05 Mar
Who are you? Which regions are you covering?
My name is Martin Žorž, and I lead the Beenius team responsible for Latin America.
What are the industry specifics in Latin America?
Regarding the industry specifics, the first one I want to mention is that now it is the time for the OTT in Latin America. Because we can see that all the countries in Latin America have practically switched off the analog and are finishing the digitalization process. At the same time, regulators have begun to loosen up the legal requirements for OTT. Obviously, the big OTT players, such as Disney, Fox, Netflix, HBO, are all targeting the market. And that does make OTT as household technology. But, on the other hand, there are still challenges in the infrastructure, which slows down the process.
Another specific is, in Latin America, there is a large amount of small- and micro-ISPs and cable operators that together represent a respectable competition to tier 1 operators.
How 2021 will evolve in the industry?
I think we will see some significant investments in the infrastructure, which will skyrocket OTT adoption. We will also see syndication in small–and micro-ISPs to get access to premium services that will be offered to their customers.
What will be the growth points of TV subscribers in 2021 for operators in LATAM? What kind of role the Beenius' products can play in that?
Today, most small– and micro-ISPs offer only internet services, and some of them provide basic TV packages, which is not attractive to modern viewers today. With small operators joining forces, this will all change. Here Beenius can help with our multi-operator solution and enable operators with negotiating power for content and access to premium features.
What is the development dilemma of operators in different regions in 2021? How could we help them with our products?
The development dilemma is how to migrate from legacy TV systems to OTT with the least pain. Beenius, as a system integrator with over decades of proven success, can help operators navigate this path, which can be very painful and costly if it is not done correctly.
How did Covid –19 affect the industry?
Covid-19 had an earthshaking impact on the industry, especially on Latin American markets. We’ve seen many new projects been paused. If I paraphrase it, you don’t renovate your house while it’s burning. On the other side, the numbers of TV consumption have never been higher. Covid also showed that hosting solutions are the future as you can scale faster and almost without limitations. The good thing is the situation in the market is getting better. We are all bruised but also wiser for it.
Are you bringing something new to the market in 2021?
2020 has been a year of big investment for Beenius. We have rolled out a completely new line of client applications with a long list of new added–value features. We enhanced our backend and are now offering it as a managed solution that is hosted in AWS cloud. We have also expanded our partner base in the region and opened an office in Brazil from where we can support our customers in real-time.
Anything you would add to share?
2020 was a year of reflection on business and personal matters. It forced us to reevaluate what really matters. I am certain that this experience will help us, our customers, and partners to secure a brighter future ahead of us.
