Conventional media, mainly TV, radio and newspapers, will still survive, even flourish, as long as they make the most of digital tools and deliver good content to their audience, media experts say.
Charo Santos Concio, president and CEO of ABS-CBN broadcasting corporation in the Philippines, said there was a growing number of viewers watching TV online using their mobile phones.
"People used to be engaged on screen in the living room. But over the past three years, *this way of TV viewing* continues to decline," Concio said in her presentation at the Asia Pacific Media Forum on Friday.
"Rapid development in mobile phone and Internet *technology* has provided a new phenomena for TV networks, as viewers now watch TV on their handsets. Therefore, television networks should adapt to this trend."
In the US, there was a 52 percent growth in the number of people watching live TV broadcasts on mobile phones between 2008 and 2009, she said.
This phenomena, Concio added, also affected potential ad growth. She urged large networks to repackage content and reinvent their business models.
She emphasized, however, that good stories told in a compelling passion were still the main reason people watched TV.
"Stories, characters and messages that relate to and are meaningful to their lives can stimulate the audience, so substance is more important than the platform.
"It is proven technology can only go far enough if content goes big enough at the heart of the audience," she added.
Responding to growing concerns that conventional media, including television, would not survive in the digital era, she said that this was the dawn of a new era.
"TV is not dead, it is evolving, and this is a challenge to broadcasters to reinvent themselves to be storytellers, no matter how content is accessed, be it via screen, laptop or mobile phone."
Tony O'Regan, founder and managing director of Hatch Media Management, discussed whether radio would die, survive or flourish.
"We didn't die when TV arrived, video didn't kill radio as well, we survived.
"And now technology breaks down all barriers and brings more TV channels, more networks, more spectrum and more wireless broadband," he said.
Currently, he said traditional radio distribution platforms could not compete with digital delivery platforms, as they were considered old and lacked relevance.
"Therefore, fundamental change is required. We need to let go of the paradigms that limit our expansion into new media and content production, and digital transmission is key to delivering competitive content."
He said that in today's radio industry, some had adapted by reaching their audience through interactive websites and social networking sites.
As for newspaper, Jacek Utko, design director of Bonnier Business Press CEE, Poland, said redesign was the key to boost sales.
"Redesign is a catalyst *for competing in the business*. It's really an amazing tool to increase circulation," he said.
"And most importantly, the future belongs to content-driven designers and visual editors."
He said newspapers should dare to break the template design everyday by adding more photos and illustrations, as well as going mobile.
