Independents diving into local content

More than half of all independent operating companies (IOCs) are now providing some form of local video content, according to a survey by Viodi, LLC.

Based on response to the survey, previous research and participation in the company’s local content workshops, Ken Pyle, co-founder of Viodi, said 53% are offering local content. Of those that aren’t offering it, 66% plan to begin providing it within the next 24 months.

Not surprisingly, independents said the number one reason to provide local content was to support their community. Among the survey’s other findings were that IOC’s local content is heavily skewed towards sports with some advertising and government meetings. At the same time, Viodi found telcos providing content ranging from documentaries to cooking shows to local news shows.

“High school sports is huge and that’s definitely the number one thing right now,” Pyle said.

Whether larger carriers such as Sprint Local and TDS follow this trend, though, is uncertain. Most of the larger independents have yet to reveal their video strategies. And thus far, RBOCs have shied away from any kind of specific local content.

“It depends on whether they’ve got a presence in the community and how deeply integrated they are,” Pyle said. “The challenge as you go up the ladder of large telcos is that they get more and more disconnected from their communities.”