Even though MIPTV was full of people selling shows and doing business, it's clear that the old business model isn't working anymore and that leaner times are coming. Courtesy of MIPTV.

It is a tough market out there. There is no doubt about it. Booth after booth, I heard the same refrain throughout the Palais -- "The business model just doesn't work anymore!" License fees are plummeting, new platforms and distribution methods loom, and broadcasters and market shares are dwindling.

Wow.

That sounds bad.

And yet, the Palais is still full of people selling shows and doing business. Television still needs content -- and good, quality content at that, as children continue to become more and more sophisticated in their viewing habits. But the writing is on the wall; change has to happen. The business model just isn't working as it used to and we are all looking at leaner times.

MIPTV took place April 6-11 in Cannes, France. While usually smaller than MIPCOM for folks in the kids biz due to the absence of MIPCOM Junior, all the usual suspects were in town for the rainy and at times surprisingly cold week. I met with a number of producers to discuss what challenges they were facing in the kids space. In many ways animation producers, since they predominately focus on content for children, are at the cutting edge of the sea change we are all facing as "the long tail" becomes a reality. Children adopt new distribution platforms first and are the most platform-agnostic demographic. TV, computer, mobile, PSP -- it is all just a screen to them. So how are producers adapting to fit the times and make it through?

Diversify
In addition to providing animation production services and original children's content for air, animation veteran Bardel Entertainment is very strategically broadening its business plan to incorporate the changing times by launching an interactive division. "Our interactive division is focusing on creating online entertainment for kids, just the same way we create entertainment for broadcast," explains CEO Delna Bhesania. "It is an extension of what we are already doing. However, since children's play patterns are changing -- they are on the computer from the time they are practically born -- we have to change to match this."

Focusing on interactive web content, Bhesania has been researching the field for the past year. This culminated in the launch of the division in January with the hire of Sang Mah, the new director of interactive media. As Mah confirms, "The collective experience is no longer in front of the TV on Saturday morning, it is now online. At Bardel, we realize that there is an opportunity there."

"We've been trying to figure out where we fit in the interactive landscape, and one of the places we have found is in building virtual worlds for kids," Bhesania further explains. Bardel's recent offerings at MIP reflect this. "As we develop shows now, we are always thinking about how the material will work online. Kids are in both places, so the shows need to be as well," Bhesania says.

Zeke's Pad, an animated comedy series, also has a significant web presence. © 2007 Bardel Ent. Inc., Leaping Lizard Prods. Inc. and Flying Bark Prods. PTY Ltd. All rights reserved.

Zeke's Pad, one of Bardel's latest productions, is starting with a TV show, but also has a significant Web play behind it, where kids can create their own Web page and interact in a small, safe, friend-to-friend community. Toki World, on the other hand, is starting as an immersive virtual world that Bhesania hopes to grow on the web and then move into other areas. Taking exploratory meetings at MIPTV, Bhesania took the property out to broadcasters, larger producers with interactive divisions and production companies with arms into licensing and merchandising. Toy companies are also a target. "What we have found is that interactive opens up different avenues to interact with new partners," concludes Bhesania.

Find the Programming Holes
If you have a product that fits an underserved or new niche, then you are going to be looking at business. For instance, animation that can be produced fast enough to create an up-to-date celebrity parody show? That is what Montreal-based Kiwi Animation is tackling with Punch, a show created for the adult-skewing Detour block on Teletoon. The show focuses on the staff of a celebrity mag and the skits are the "articles" that they roll out. This is ideal for the new marketplace, as the show can be sold as a whole or broken into pieces (individual skits) for mobile download and Internet consumption. Plus, local broadcasters can also add their own content with localized celebrities and issues, if they wish. However, by the brisk pace of business at their stand, I would say everyone seems to know who Paris Hilton, Britney and Arnold Schwarzenegger are.