IKO Media Group is a leading player in Hungary’s TV industry. It also has a strong presence in the content markets of several CEE countries. Broadband TV News spoke with András Enyedi, CEO, IKO TV Central Europe.
Can you give us some background on the IKO Media Group, of which IKO TV Central Europe is a part? When was it established, what are its main activities and who owns the company?
IKO Media Group was founded in 2001 and it is currently one of the most significant media groups in Hungary. It is one of the essential players in national and regional program production, cable television operation and broadcasting, and the sale of commercial time. The media company belongs to the business interests of the Hungarian-born Belgian businessman, Tamas L. Rakosi.
IKO Müsorgyártó (IKO Production Company), one of the biggest programme production companies in Hungary, stands out from the group. Its main business partner is the leading Hungarian commercial channel RTL Klub (and its affiliate channels) – with IKO producing almost 70% of its local produced programmes – but it has other Hungarian TV channels among its partners as well. Moreover, the company also deals with format development, corporate visual identity management, and the production of commercial spots and miscellaneous video materials. IKO Sales House, specialised in commercial time sale, also plays an important role, but the group has interests in the outdoor advertising market as well. And of course we should also mention IKO Kábeltévé (IKO Cable Television), which is running in the international scene under the name “IKO TV Central Europe”.
Looking specifically at IKO TV Central Europe, how many countries are you present in and how many niche channels do you represent?
IKO TV Central Europe is an important player of the Hungarian and Central European cable television market. We are present in numerous countries, such as Hungary, Poland, Romania, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia. Our success is based on our knowledge of acquisition, programming and the cable market, our portfolio-based strategic thinking, our self-made production brands, creativity, and continuous development. Our own brands are SportKlub, a sports channel that has been present on the market for seven years, FightKlub, specialised in combat sports, the documentary-themed DoQ, Fishing&Hunting, a channel dedicated for anglers and hunters, and Film+, a film channel in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
We have been distributing seven cable channels connected to RTL Group since January 2012, beside other channels. The flagships of the channel portfolio are the market leader Film+, Cool and RTL II, the latter being RTL Group’s newest hit, an exciting and very promising general entertainment channel that has developed continuously since its launch. Similarly, in the Czech and the Slovakian market we distribute 20 channels, including Viacom channels.
That is, we manage the distribution of a total of 31 brands all over Central Europe, but the advanced state of the negotiations means that this number will probably have grown by the time this article is published.
Our market is complex and is in a constant change, but we do our best to try and adapt to in the most flexible way possible.
Would it be fair to say that IKO TV Central Europe competes with Chello Central Europe in the distribution of thematic services in the CEE region? If not, how do your activities differ?
Similar to other regional actors, we both are present in a market where everyone competes with everyone else. The main difference is probably in the structure of the system itself. The distribution portfolio of IKO has three tiers: the top “layer” comprises the market leader cable television channels, the flagship channels; the second layer consists of medium-category channels, while the third one contains the niche thematic cable channels, each focused on a well-defined target audience. This structure has been efficient so far, guaranteeing the success of IKO.
What would you say are the main challenges currently facing IKO Cable and how are they being addressed? How is IKO Cable adapting to the rapidly changing nature of the industry, and in particular the growth of multiscreen and OTT services?
As for the marketing of the represented channels, the large number of television channels present in the CCE market poses the biggest challenge. Also, we are facing new needs from the audience due to the spread of digitisation. New services, products and platforms have emerged, for example OTT, VOD, HD channels, mobile TV, and 3D channels. There is a strong need for close cooperation between broadcasters, production companies and operators to help subscribers get to know these products and improve their willingness to pay for them later. We are conducting intensive negotiations with all of our partners, so that together we would be able to meet the demands of our subscribers.
Have there been any recent additions to IKO TV Central Europe’s channel portfolio and are any planned in the near future?
Yes, the portfolio of the represented channels is constantly expanding. For instance, English Club TV channel and Channel One Russia, both joined IKO TV Central Europe Group in the last months. As for the self-operated television brands, we are planning innovations, but it would be too early to talk about the developments at this moment.
How would you like to see IKO Cable develop over the next 3-5 years? What are the main challenges and opportunities it is likely to encounter over this period?
Currently the majority of the population uses the internet only as second screen, but there is a clear and visible pattern that beside linear TV viewing, the demand for contents easily consumed anytime and anywhere is likely to increase in the near future. IKO has always been proud of its flexible stance towards challenges of all kinds, hence I am certain that in 3–5 years viewers will meet more and more content distributed or produced by IKO, and by then they can access it not only in their homes, but anywhere and anytime, they want it.
