Top Trends in the Entertainment Industry

Some of the new trends that have peaked during the past several years in the entertainment industry have been the use of the Internet. Many publishers are now e-publishing while magazine sales, newspapers, and other paper forms sales have plummeted. The ease of watching TV over the Internet vs. using paid subscriptions such as satellite is becoming more prominent. “The burning issue affecting all sectors of the entertainment and media industry is maintaining control of content and audiences while taking advantage of myriad new electronic delivery venues”(Plunkett Research, 2014). More and more people are expecting the “Smart” technology to be installed into everything ranging from televisions to even refrigerators. Competition in this industry has now become increasing while consumers are expecting more and more from their products and services.

The following video from expert Scott Steinburg on behalf of Billboard Magazine gives us more insight into how the changes in technology is giving us the ability to reach larger audiences:

“Recommendation software that learns the habits and tastes of consumers have evolved to do a better job of pushing appropriate entertainment choices toward audiences. Amazon.com has long been a leader in the use of such software. Netflix has created an admirable package of its own”(Plunkett Research, 2014).



The revolutionary Steve Jobs gave us the very foundation upon which the rest of the world has followed suit. Now this new “norm” has been our foundation. I think the question for any entrepreneur is what’s NEXT? What will be our new technology that could surpass what we think now is newest craze. Somewhere, someone is inventing something quicker, faster, and even easier for customers. Where we are on the right side of the equation will be what matters for the success of our company. Innovating the norm and giving society something that they are telling us they need, will be useful in ones strategy for the future.

Booz&Co(2014) mentions that “In today’s search-driven world, consumers are actively looking for control, community, and interactivity”.  The entertainment industry should be more embracing and find innovative ways to help consumers have more control over their usage of the products or services but also give them the ability to interact creatively. 

References:

http://www.booz.com/global/home/what_we_do/industries/media_entertainment/me_key_trends

http://www.plunkettresearch.com/entertainment-media-publishing-market-research/industry-trends

Funding Resources

The first website that I discovered when researching funding resources was TheAssociation for Enterprise Opportunity(AEO).  This company provides small micro-business loans for startup companies.  Not only that, but they provide other resources to help with business planning and operations.  According to the company mission “AEO creates economic opportunity for underserved entrepreneurs. AEO supports the development of strong and effective US microbusiness initiatives to assist underserved entrepreneurs in starting, stabilizing, and expanding businesses”. (AEO, 2014).

   The vision of the company is for everyone with an equal opportunity to have access to resources to help create wealth through small business ownership.  In essence the company has helped over 2 million entrepreneurs secure private funding to help create jobs and economic growth.  The major funders that are a part of the organization can be found here.  The programs that the entrepreneur can participate in receiving this funding are for green/ecosystem products/services,  and specifics for woman, veterans, and youth  You are brought to a specific webpage to access for more information.  After more research I found a great number of entreprenuers who received a micro-loan to build their company.  One of my favorties was an artist in NC.  Her success video is posted below:

 http://vimeo.com/11053936

 The next funding resource I glanced at is the National Community Investment Fund.   Their business model states that for every dollar invested into the fund, it becomes $8 to lend to small businesses, nonprofits, and individuals in distressed communities.  They provide new markets tax credit programs helping entrepreneur’s in-underserved communities provide products or services.  It seems the company aspires to help increase societies responsibly priced financial products and services while also providing a successful rate of return for the investment.  This company matches the right mission oriented bank with the entrepreneur and their startup.  One example of how this company has helped communities can be seen here:

Lastly, it appears this company is rather strong and in many regions. There are so many resources available to entrepreneurs looking to seek opportunity.  It’s ensuring that the business model is viable and investible.  According to Guy Kawasaki, not all companies are investible.  This video below is advice provided by him when he first started his companies and not choosing venture capital as a major funding resource.

Resources:

http://www.aeoworks.org/index.php/site/page/category/videos/

http://www.ncif.org/connect/about-ncif/news-and-announcements/visualize-national-nmtc-impact#.UyXk7f3aW5c