Editor’s Note: The following is an excerpt from Reality Check, a feature for RCR Wireless News’ weekly e-mail newsletter, Mobile Content and Culture.
The mobile entertainment industry is currently plagued with a wide variance of proprietary formats in reporting mobile content sales, their associated metadata and consumer activity. Fully 93% of industry experts surveyed by the MEF stated that accurate content sales reporting is critical to the long-term success of the industry.
However the mobile entertainment industry, to date, has not developed good practice for content sales reporting. This situation has to be rectified soon by both the content providers and the digital retailers working together to create a practical, more transparent and consistent system that will benefit the industry as a whole.
It is hard to imagine that an industry that relies so heavily on content has not already developed good practice for its content-reporting standards. At present, there are a number of different ways in which mobile content sales are reported, with many companies receiving up to 50 different types of reports.
This is partly due to the absence of defined best practice or targets, and partly because content providers have widely varying requirements when it comes to reporting. Even more worrying is the fact that 42% of people surveyed believed the reports they were given were not accurate at all.
The bottom line is that everyone in the value chain, including the customers, are losing out because of poor content sales reporting. The industry has to come together to discuss frankly and openly the issues that affect their business and the industry as a whole. While it is clear that different businesses want different types of reporting, all would benefit from achieving a common ground and developing good practice.
In answer to this, the MEF, in partnership with a number of key industry players are working with the industry to develop and deliver Content Sales Reporting Best Practices Guidelines.
The guidelines will provide market intelligence to make it significantly easier for companies to target consumers and respond effectively to demand, increasing revenue opportunities and focusing investment for new content. It will also cut operating costs, increase efficiency and ensure transparency. Once the industry gets it right, content reporting will be a key tool for creating revenue and ensuring industry growth in the future. Developing and adopting good practice will mean everyone, including the consumer, is a winner in the end.
