In 6 years at @mashable, I have covered some stuff. Here’s some of the evidence. #artifacts pic.twitter.com/jbadCOzxgE
— Lance Ulanoff (@LanceUlanoff) December 6, 2017
Unlike Lance Ulanoff, Mashable’s intrepid, yet soon-to-be missed chief correspondent, editor-at-large, and industry conference impresario, I tend to be more solicitous (and less ubiquitous) when it comes to the tech and media confabs I attend in any given year.
My past visits to South by Southwest offered a cornucopia of compelling content, but the multi-week extravaganza clearly became too much to consume, even with advance planning. I just returned from my third visit to the Web Summit – the first in Dublin, the last two in Lisbon. This year’s sold-out three-day event really shined, though meticulous scheduling is also required. I’m now even considering attending Web Summit’s smaller sibling conference, Collision, slated for April 29-May 3 in the Big Easy.
Business Insider’s Ignition: Future of Media is one gathering of media and tech’s movers & shakers that never ceases to disappoint. It also happens to coalesce right here in my hometown of NYC. BI founder Henry Blodget’s programming folks really have a knack for attracting an impressive range of industry C-suiters who never fail to deliver a promise to disrupt our world.
Client commitments limited my attendance this year to Day One, but I still emerged with many redeeming pearls of wisdom. Following are some of the more notable quotables I was able to transcribe to Twitter.
Selects from Henry’s annual rite of passage on 14 Things You’ll Want to Know About the Future of Media:
At #2017IGNITION: @hblodget: Americans spend 12 hours/day using media and technology, yet we’re reached media saturation. Lots more media consolidation on the horizon. pic.twitter.com/FvffdplYhN
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
.@HBlodget: @netflix only second to @ESPN in terms of content spend. $NFLX $DIS #2017IGNITION pic.twitter.com/3OdW9NnslA
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
.@businessinsider‘s @hblodget: Big media still offers the ability to reach people outside of the $GOOG – $FB duopoly. #2017IGNITION #DigitalMarketing pic.twitter.com/74Zt8fvYTu
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
Then there was Snapchat’s VP of Content Nick Belluk using Ignition’s platform to unveil (not for the first time) the $SNAP’s new interface:
.@nickbelluk reveals (to @businessinsider editor @ajs) @snapchat‘s “biggest ever redesign.” Separates social from friend feeds, i.e., interests vs. relationships. $SNAP #2017IGNITION pic.twitter.com/izvf88S506
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
CNBC’s Julia Boorstin took to the stage alongside Verizon’s (soon-to-depart) EVP/President of Global Media Marni Walden:
The goal for @Verizon is to take all of our content and put it across as many of our channels as possible. – $VZ‘s EVP/President of Global Media Marni Walden tells @CNBC‘s @JBoorstin #2017IGNITION pic.twitter.com/k0KFvTfm2q
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
.@jboorstin to Verizon’s media chief Marni Walden “Is content the great differentiator?” Walden: “I don’t think any single platform can do it all. There just hasn’t been an elegant way to get to the content.” #$2017IGNITION (Tell that to $CMCSA.)
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
Shortly thereafter, BI’s ad reporter Tanya Dua had some face time with GE’s CMO Linda Boff:
“We don’t do programmatic. We have a small [ad] budget and I want to know how it’s being spent and the ROI.” @GE‘s CMO @lindaboff (l.) to @businessinsider‘s ad reporter @tanyadua (r.). #2017IGNITION $GE pic.twitter.com/6l6XvZSACd
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
Henry took it upon himself to depose 21st Century Fox co-chairman Lachlan Murdoch and depose he did:
“The headlines don’t always show the facts. With Fox News, it took us 13 days from when we learned about Roger Ailes and walking him out of the building.” – Lachlan Murdoch to @hblodget #2017IGNITION $FOXA pic.twitter.com/6z7WMMRQUJ
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
On the sale of @21CF media assets: “Let’s not feed the gossip bubbling out there in the media.” Lachlan Murdoch to @HBlodgett #2017IGNITION
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
“Is @FoxNews fair and balanced?” – @Hblodget to Lachlan Murdoch who replied: “Is @ntimes fair and balanced? The news org is completely different from the opinion section.” #2017IGNITION
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
Lachlan Murdoch: “I don’t think @FoxNews is ‘state TV.’ I don’t think any news org should be behind any individual.” Cites @ShepNewsTeam as an example of news. ” It would be bad for her and bad for us if we hired @Maddow” #2017IGNITION
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
Henry then had a chance to spar with Facebook’s VP of Partnerships Dan Rose:
.@facebook ‘s VP of Partnerships’ @drose007: “If we don’t create value for partners, then we’re not doing our job.” Case in point: “our new video product Watch.” #2017IGNITION $FB pic.twitter.com/4mdy0yWiAd
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
$FB‘s VP of Partnerships’ @drose007 tells @hblodget: “The value proposition of newsfeed to partners is driving users back to their own content, products, etc.” #2017IGNITION
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
“Let’s talk about #fakenews.” – @hblodget to Facebook’s @drose007 How are you approaching this? “We’re upset about it. We’re taking it seriously. Quality journalism matters. We don’t want false news on Facebook.” #2017IGNITION
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
On #fakenews. @Facebook‘s @drose007: We’re going after trolls and fake accounts. You have to be a real person on Facebook. Our AI is getting better. We’re giving quality news orgs a bigger presence, e.g. logos…” #2017IGNITION
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
“The power of our platform is that it gives voice. The problem with traditional media is that a lot of voices are not given that option.” – @facebook‘s VP, Partnerships @drose007 at #2017IGNITION
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
One of the more riveting and timely interviews came when BI U.S. editor-in-chief Alyson Shontell joined Megyn Kelly on stage:
.@MegynTODAY to @ajs: “Nope. I didn’t have any official knowledge (of Matt Lauer news). “I heard rumors about him, which are not the same as reportable facts” #2017IGNITION pic.twitter.com/s0Yds886H3
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
.@MegynTODAY to @ajs: “Nope. I didn’t have any official knowledge (of Matt Lauer news). “I heard rumors about him, which are not the same as reportable facts” #2017IGNITION pic.twitter.com/s0Yds886H3
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
“The culture is changing…meaningfully…by the minute…thanks to the women who are finding the courage.” – @MegynTODAY to @businessinisder editor @AJS #2017IGNITION
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
“In the era of Trump, you might as well stand on the edge of the Pacific and scream at the top of your lungs…to no avail.” – @megynkelly on why she took herself out of the political #journalism mix. #2017IGNITION
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
CNBC’s Julia Boorstin returned to chat up GroupNineMedia’s Ben Lerer and one of its major investor Discovery CEO David Zaslav.
“We’ve learned a lot about short-form content from @GroupNineMedia. We’ve been a B-to-B company,. Now we have an ambition to own direct-to-consumer content” – @Discovery CEO David Zaslav to @JBoorstin #2017IGNITION pic.twitter.com/b84RyHZZb7
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
“Our whole strategy is owning IP. Owning the super-fan groups, eg, food, cars, African-American content…” – @discovery CEO David Zaslav. #2017IGNITION
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
“@Vice and @Buzzfeed are being held to unrealistic expectations, eg. Silicon Valley growth metrics. However, these are the brands of the future.” We’re also very bullish on $SNAP – @groupninemedia‘s @benjlerer #2017IGNITION
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
Finally, I stuck around to hear my old pal Richard Plepler opine on all things HBO, Game of Thrones, and a little AT&T/Time-Warner peppered in for good measure.
The world according to @HBO CEO Richard Plepler « We’re on track for our biggest year in history in terms of subscriber and revenue growth. « w/ @hblodget at #2017IGNITION pic.twitter.com/qdPwGxcX3b
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
.@hblodget: “How many can survive?” @HBO CEO Richard Plepler: “I don’t know but, brands matter more than ever. We’re working on a number of prequels to #GameofThrones.” #2017IGNITION
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
.@hblodget to @HBO‘s Richard Plepler: What is the next #GameofThrones. Is it #Westworld? Anyone who tells you that Thrones would be Thrones is full of it. You never know where the next great thing is. It’s all about working with the right talent.”
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
In re: @HBO‘s international growth: “We’re in 60 countries today. We have to decide whether to strike OTT or licensing deals. If I were betting, I think we’ll see more OTT. We want optionality.” – Richard Plepler to @HBlodget #2017IGNITION
— Peter Himler (@PeterHimler) November 29, 2017
All in all, a most worthwhile endeavor. (And who knew Twitter was such a good note-taking platform?)
Great article.