OTT News Summit Explores Many Paths To Viewer Discovery

By TVNewsCheck on August 17, 2020

Panelists from Fox Soul, Newsy and CBC will share how they find new viewers in a crowded streaming ecosystem abounding with choices. Register here.

By: TVN Staff | August 17, 2020 | 5:29 a.m. ET.
Streaming television has more viewers — and more viewing choices — than ever since the pandemic began, and news organizations have to work even harder to be a signal in the noise. TVNewsCheck will explore how streaming news services are succeeding in finding those viewers in a panel at its upcoming OTT News Summit.

The panel, More Viewers, More Paths to Discovery, will stream at 2 p.m. ET on Sept. 23 and feature James DuBose, head of programming and executive producer, Fox Soul; Roma Kojima, senior director, OTT video, CBC; and Eric Svenson, VP of marketing, Newsy. The panel will be moderated by TVNewsCheck Editor Michael Depp.

“Discoverability remains one of news organizations’ biggest challenges on streaming,” Depp said. “Viewers need to wade through a dense thicket of highly-competitive channels to find them on their OTT devices, and the news companies also need to make sure they’re iterating everywhere they need to be to find that critical mass. James, Roma and Eric are up against this challenge daily, and have lessons to share on how to meet it.”

TVNewsCheck’s virtualized edition of its second annual OTT News Summit will run Sept. 22-25, engaging the pandemic’s impact on the streaming value chain and how news organizations can take advantage of new opportunities in content, technology and monetization.

Attendees will participate in the live, daily, two-and-a-half-hour streamed sessions on Zoom Webinar, where they can pose questions to speakers, participate in live audience polling and wrap up the day with half-hour, open-mic roundtables on key issues.

Before, during and after the conference, attendees may also network, submit suggested questions for speakers, chat about issues, browse virtual exhibits and set appointments with sponsors by downloading the TVNewsCheck Events app from the Apple or Android stores. App users who have registered for the OTT News Summit also have the option of watching the programming’s live stream on the app.

Panels will include Programming OTT News in a Pandemic; Virtualizing the Election: OTT’s Programming Opportunities; Ad Tech Pandemic Report Card; Creating Frictionless OTT Workflows; and Monetizing OTT: New Opportunities in a Changed World. Jean Ellen Cowgill, GM of Bloomberg QuickTake, will open the summit in a keynote interview. CBS Interactive EVP and GM Christy Tanner will be the subject of its closing keynote.

Register for the 2020 OTT News Summit here. To submit questions for speakers, chat about issues on The Wall, browse Virtual Exhibits, network with fellow registrants, set appointments with sponsors and stay up on the Summit’s agenda, please download the TVNewsCheck Events App.