John Peters, managing director and lead for media and entertainment at Accenture, specializes in tough love for media companies: His new “Thrive Index” lays out 50 strategic options for executives in need of bold solutions to survive tumultuous times.
Take, for example, how he applies his innovative principles to the current predicaments facing Paramount Global, which is deliberating over a few different M&A options that strike Peters as not quite radical enough.
“M&A inside of just film and television and bringing together broadcast options is just like two people in a bigger lifeboat that’s still heading a towards a waterfall,” said Peters on the latest episode of the Variety podcast “Strictly Business.” “We’d like to see them doing deals that enter fast-growth markets.”
Peters also addresses AI’s impact on media companies, with a focus on job creation and revenue growth. He notes that for all the controversy around the technology, it may well drive new revenue streams and create jobs while reducing costs and bringing more personalization to advertising.
Noting the increasing number of streaming bundles being offered to consumers, Peters believes companies playing in that marketplace need to look broader at product offerings that transcend just video offerings.
“We think bundles that start to move you out of simply being in one category provides some strategic resilience, getting into a bundle that has more of what consumers want,” said Peters. “So look for these companies who are entering the space to be creating more expansive bundles. And those may have much broader appeal to consumers than simply media bundles that are only within the media space.”
“Strictly Business” is Variety’s weekly podcast featuring conversations with industry leaders about the business of media and entertainment. (Please click here to subscribe to our free newsletter.) New episodes debut every Wednesday and can be downloaded at Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Spotify, Google Play, SoundCloud and more.
