David and Goliath - A new world of possibilities for content sharing

Disney and Fox have finally closed their deal, creating a new powerhouse that will have far reaching consequences on the global entertainment industry. They have promised to launch their own streaming platforms, which leaves the likes of Amazon, Netflix, Hulu and YouTube in a very interesting position and will surely have their own response to this ground-breaking development. However, grabbing and holding on to the lion’s share of this highly lucrative business will be no easy task and it’s going to be exciting to ‘watch’ as the Titans of the entertainment industry battle it out for global dominance.

Within the financial markets, data content is a multi-billion-dollar business and growing and the entertainment industry is setting the benchmark for how people expect to consume content. The implications of this latest merger will not have gone unnoticed by the global financial services players as the industry moves towards a similar, more cost-effective self-service approach to showcasing and distributing information, fuelled by an endless supply of new market data, niche and alternative data sources.

The watershed moment for the entertainment business tapping into new consumer markets can find its origins in the availability of smart devices and super-fast internet connectivity that supported streaming. Technology, or the smarter use of technology, was the catalyst for enabling a global media marketplace that we all now simply take for granted.

Within financial markets, many firms are now adopting new technologies and approaches which are transforming a sector that has been ripe for change for a very long time. The upshot of this is that the leading, some would say legacy market data providers, are no longer calling the shots as the new content creators and content consumers look for more modern, cheaper ways to connect with a wider audience and transact business. New technologies, pressure on costs, the need for improved operational efficiency together with increasing competition is disrupting the ‘old world’ status quo. The new breed of users demand more choice and highly flexible commercial terms, the same as when they consume entertainment content.

The simple truth is that the technological advancements that created the self-service approach to music and film have not stood still and continue to evolve. It could be argued that the same style of technologies could be embraced and applied to the financial market and alternative data business today. If we allow ourselves to draw parallels from our peers in the entertainment industry, it shouldn’t be lost on any of us that once the likes of Amazon and Netflix mastered the technical distribution of other people’s content, they quickly realized the power and financial benefits of creating, owning and delivering their own. Hello Netflix Originals, binge worthy content via smart, consumer friction free technology.

Data is power. Content is King and on-demand is the new order of the day. Just like the entertainment industry, it will be fascinating to ‘watch’ how the battle for dominance between the existing ‘Goliaths’ of market data and the new young ‘David’s’ plays out.  Just imagine the possibilities.