2 words draw auds: 'Internet,' 'nonfiction'
NATPE panels push passion, developing high-tech
NEW ORLEANS -- While the convention floor showed few signs of life below, NATPE panels Thursday were SRO as observers flocked to catch a piece of the market's two favorite buzzwords: "Internet" and "nonfiction."
With nonfiction programming becoming more important in the cable-expanded universe, participants in the "Just the Facts: Syndication Success with Nonfiction Programming" seminar moderated by RealScreen magazine editor Mary Ellen Armstrong, were quick to point out that nonfiction producers had been giving up too much in their efforts to get their work on the air.
"The biggest danger facing producers right now is that they must be careful not to give away too many rights," said panelist Steven Rosenbaum, president and executive producer for the Broadcast News Network.
Opportunities
"Nonfiction programmers have great opportunities to get their stuff on the air, but they're letting cablers retain too much ownership on the property," Stephen Janson, prexy of Janson Television and Video, agreed.
"They have to make sure they are able to retain copyright and control equity if they want to walk away from their deals a winner."
On the producers' side was the abundance of airtime available for quality nonfiction programming, as long as the producers realized that no two deals are alike.
"A variety of things can succeed out there," said Gary Benz, founder and president of GRB Entertainment. "But you have to be (passionate) and believe in the project you are doing because buyers will see right through you if you don't."
On the heels of the nonfiction seminar, the "Video on the Internet: Is Its Future Clear or Cloudy?," moderated by Variety U.S. publishing director Charlie Koones, also drew a crowd as new media business continues to grow at the market.
Demand should rise
Panelists said that as the public grows more dependent on the Web, demand for broadband and enhanced TV would only get stronger.
"People in offices don't have access to TV, but 85% of them do have access to the Internet," Edward Huguez, chief operating officer of InterVU, observed. "So they are reaching out through computers right now to watch John Glenn in a rocket, access the Clinton tapes, etc. By accessing the world, this trend can only expand."
