By Etan Vlessing
OTTAWA – Most people go to Netflix or Amazon Prime for their online TV fixes, but a host of niche streaming services like Britbox, Shudder and CBC Gem target those with more obscure or specific viewing tastes.
But as these boutique upstarts go up against online giants increasingly penetrating the Canadian market, some of their top execs gathered last week at Prime Time in Ottawa to talk about how to snatch market share from superstores like Apple TV and Disney+.
“Everyone is trying to be a giant. We don’t have to be everything for everybody. We have to be something for somebody,” Soumya Sriraman, president of Britbox, which was created by BBC and ITV in association with AMC, told the conference delegates.
Others (who as a panel eschewed all mention of the Yale Report and its Canadian regulatory implications for likely spending obligations on foreign players) revealed their own aspirations to break into the streaming big leagues, not least to survive and thrive in an increasingly crowded media space.
Tracey Pearce, Bell Media president of distribution and pay, agreed a streamer like Crave that drives a middle lane between a boutique and broad offering also needs to target viewers with a wide selection of wares.
“I agree with the notion you need to be special to somebody, and we need a bunch of some bodies to have a thriving SVOD,” Pearce argued.
Crave, she explains, offers a broad array of programming, including premium American shows from HBO, Showtime and other suppliers, and a range of Canadian scripted and unscripted originals. “We’re not a global player. We’re a Canadian player. We have mix of premium programming and we’re committed to our Canadian service,” Pearce said.
Craig Engler, general manager of Shudder, described his SVOD as the “Netflix for horror and supernatural” fare, offers a targeted and boutique service bigger than most as it appeals to a loyal and growing following. “We’re riding the wave of interest in the genre. If you go to Netflix, you’ll find some great horror films. If you watch a few horror pics, get Netflix. If you want more, get Shudder,” Engler explained.
Gave Lindo, executive director of OTT programming at the CBC, said the pubcaster’s Gem streaming service strives to be a platform for emerging Canadian creative, especially those making short form video. “It’s finding new Canadian voices that otherwise wouldn’t have a platform,” Lindo explained.
Most streaming execs on the Prime Time panel were aligned with a traditional broadcast player, since one way or the other they share content with varying window strategies.
Britbox’s Sriraman said her service leverages the brand equity of the BBC and ITV, along with its programming slates and libraries. “There’s no bigger megaphone than the broadcast platform. Equally, we have access to a pipeline that the broadcasters need to keep for themselves,” she explained.
Shudder’s Engler added that parent AMC, while enthusiastic about the horror genre thanks to its success with The Walking Dead and its spinoffs, cautioned his service has never streamed the top-rated cable TV show for its own audience as the rights are locked up elsewhere.
“AMC has the number one horror show of all time. They have an affinity for this type of programming. But we don’t have The Walking Dead. Those deals preceded us,” he explained.
The indie player on the panel was First Look Media’s Topic, which is backed by eBay billionaire Pierre Omidyar (which also publishes “adversarial journalism” outlet The Intercept) as the SVOD targets a specific audience with a generalist offering. “We’re going after a sensibility, a state of mind, to when you don’t want to search through Netflix and Showtime, but you’re looking for something a little bit different,” Ryan Chanatry, general manager of Topic, explained.
And with no broadcaster as a corporate overlord, Chanatry added Topic (which is geared to feature “stories of consequence”) can pick up projects that may not find a home elsewhere. “There’s so many people coming into this space who have wanted to tell a story and get a particular point of view into the world,” he explained.
