FAST Goes Truly Global at MipTV 2023
FAST is having a moment.
Discussions around free streaming channels have been the buzz of industry events, beginning with MIPCOM 2022 in France and continuing around the world, first in Canada for Prime Time 2023, then Australia for Future of TV Advertising Sydney and, most recently, MipTV 2023’s Global FAST Summit, where the event was standing-room only.
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Variety Intelligence Platform has had an onstage presence at all of these conferences and has seen the interest levels in FAST boom. Now the VIP+ subscriber exclusive “Global FAST” provides analysis of just who are the major international forces in FAST and a deeper look at the top five global markets.
The new revenue streams available from FAST are an obvious reason why there is heightened interest in the format, spurred by the recent entry of media giant Warner Bros. Discovery to the industry. But across the panels at MipTV, there emerged several trends worth discussing.
The most important is the definition of FAST. Domestically in the U.S. and internationally, there is confusion about just what FAST means. As VIP+ noted in the most recent “Life in the FAST Lane” report, those working in the industry refer to FAST as solely linear streaming channels and separate it from free on-demand content.
This was echoed consistently by those onstage at MipTV, beginning with Ampere Analysis executive director and co-founder Guy Bisson. The need to define FAST consistently, or for commentators to reflect the industry sentiment, is pressing, as confusion frequently occurs with advertisers and content companies, who have read that it is inclusive of AVOD.
Pluto TV’s EVP and international general manager Olivier Jollet took the definition of FAST one step further by arguing that it should now only refer to channels that are properly curated, versus the looping playlists of old. This trend is something that VIP+ has previously noted, with curation a key differentiator in the battle to attract viewers.
Within content, localization is also important and goes hand in hand with curation. Having a FAST platform with content that consists mostly of international shows is not a way to attract an audience, at least yet. AI dubbing companies such as Papercup are currently focusing on being able to take content from other languages and adapt it into a few languages but there will come a point where content can be translated to many more, opening options for services looking for "localized" content.
Single-IP channels have also been a hot topic of conversation around the world. It was noted at Future of TV Advertising in Sydney that they are among the strongest performance drivers for FAST channels, and this was echoed at MipTV, first by the Local Act’s Marion Ranchet during her keynote address with VIP+ and then by multiple executives.
Recent analysis conducted by VIP+ showed there are 284 distinctive FAST channels based around a single piece of IP in the U.S., or 17% of the total. This figure is similar in Canada (18% of all channels), greater than what is seen in Australia (9%) but lagging behind the U.K. (21%). Given the success these channels have in attracting audiences, a savvy bet is that the figures will grow in all regions.
Content was a key point brought up in multiple discussions. As Banijay VP of digital Shaun Keeble put it, “Content is going to win, and having rich IP is key.” What this means for the future of FAST is a system likely dominated by legacy media companies, studios and service providers via owned-and-operated channels on their platforms, with fewer independent channels.
Instead, those will likely license their content to the bigger companies, which will require more as channel refresh rates grow. (See page 31 of “Life in the FAST Lane” for more detail on refresh rates.) Tying this back to the point about curation, there’s a strong possibility that FAST in the near future will be an ecosystem that looks like cable TV, in terms of scheduled channels consisting mostly of reruns and mostly unscripted originals — but one with infinite more options to engage viewers.
To learn more about how FAST looks in the U.S., U.K., Canada, Australia and Germany, and to see where the global FAST services operate, subscribe to VIP+ today to read the full report.
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