Ahead of IBC 2023, Bubble Agency, the global PR, marketing, and events specialist for the media and entertainment technology and services sectors, has released its third annual State of the Industry Media Technology Buying report – Buying Media Technology in the Age of Efficiency – in partnership with leading analyst firm Caretta Research. The report uncovers the impact of global trends and current economic conditions on the broadcast and media technology sector, and reveals that 90% of buyers would consider vendors outside of the media technology ecosystem for key parts of their supply chain.
The independent analysis detailed in the report reveals that buyers are becoming increasingly discerning of new developments and are focused on creating efficiencies within their technology stack. They are not easily swayed by buzzwords and are taking a pragmatic approach to new services, only investing in those which deliver value to audiences.
The report reveals how buyer and vendor relationships are changing, with buyers placing greater emphasis on direct communication to better understand products and services. Buyers now value recommendations from their personal networks over channels such as social media. The trends which are attracting investment are those which seek to revolutionise parts of the content supply chain, such as genAI, SaaS and super aggregation. Developments in SaaS and cloud now allow buyers to try before they buy, with an increased emphasis on product demos and POCs.
Buyers are taking a pragmatic approach and focusing on technology that fits their strategic priorities, as they explore ways to remain competitive and protect revenue. Data reveals that technology providing a strong business case for improving ROI is driving purchasing decisions, and there is a need to understand product fit before considering new technology.
“In the age of efficiency reigning supreme, the data in our report indicates that there are opportunities for buyers and vendors to innovate together,” commented Sadie Groom, CEO, Bubble Agency. “Vendors have a unique chance to adapt to the evolving needs of buyers, and buyers can in turn become influencers and advocate for a vendor’s products and services.”
Key findings from Buying Media Technology in the Age of Efficiency:
• 90% of buyers in the survey group say they would consider vendors outside of the media technology ecosystem for key parts of their supply chain.
• Buyers are moving away from end-to-end services and would prefer to implement modular solutions which integrate with their existing stack.
• 53% of vendor survey respondents are active in markets outside of media and entertainment.
• Most buyers are fundamentally concerned with delivering their core services with high reliability and high quality, rather than launching new services.
• 75% of vendors and buyers are seeing the need to tighten belts and 30% of the survey group have had a hiring freeze which compounds the widespread feeling of being under-resourced.
The independent research was commissioned by Bubble Agency and conducted by Caretta Research in July and August 2023 among global respondents in the broadcast, OTT, production, and telecom markets. To explore more key findings for tech buyers and sellers by downloading a copy of Buying Media Technology in the Age of Efficiency, click here.
