In the 1.2023 issue of “mebulive” magazine, René Steinbusch, CEO of EMG Germany GmbH, explained why the rebranding in 2021 was important for the EMG Group and which technologies will be the focus in the future.
The full interview is available in German in the print edition or online.
The interview is also available in English. Just read on:
The dawn of a new era
The EMG Group is expanding internationally. The rebranding and the complete integration of nobeo at the end of 2021 were just the start. In the future, synergies are to be exploited across Europe and investments made in remote production, reveals EMG Germany boss René Steinbusch.
Since October 2021, nobeo GmbH has been trading as EMG Germany. Why is strategic internationalisation so important for a TV services provider like the EMG Group?
René Steinbusch: As a strong joint EMG brand, we are perceived very differently today, both nationally and internationally. The fact is that the market is currently consolidating more and more and customers are looking for strong, internationally positioned partners – and as partners on an equal footing, especially when it comes to major international events. Clients are increasingly trying to keep the number of service providers as low as possible. In doing so, many clients want as few points of contact as possible and the certainty that the contracted company can provide reproducible services anywhere in the world. For us in Germany, there is another effect: for us, the exchange of know-how is also a priority. With our studio focus, we were somewhat more limited compared to the other EMG companies. Now we have the opportunity to deploy staff on productions managed by subsidiaries. This creates synergies – our employees get an insight into other ways of working and technologies. So, the rebranding is also an important signal for better, stronger cooperation, internally and externally.
When you took over as CEO, Shaun Gregory said there’s great potential for EMG Germany outside the studio-based core business. What did he mean by that?
René Steinbusch: Through the closer cooperation in the group, we can now also offer top-quality services outside our classic studio business in Germany. An example of this is the NFL production in Munich or my favourite project, the European Championships in Munich. There, hand in hand with many companies in the group, we showed what we can achieve together in Germany. And that is certainly an area where we will continue to seek more intensive collaboration with the group, so that we will then appear more strongly together in the German market.
What developments do you see in studio productions and how have the demands from customers changed in that respect?
René Steinbusch: The demand for studio services has remained high for years. Even during all the Covid restrictions, there was no decline. Quite the opposite: it led to a high utilization of studio productions as an alternative to extravagant on-location productions. Now we have an energy and economic crisis and again the demand for studio productions is still very high. Broadcasters are looking for a comparatively cheaper way to produce content – and studio productions are high on the agenda right now. But we also work closely with producers and broadcasters to develop concepts that create synergies between different programs and make workflows more efficient. That’s why we are very positive about the future.
What does such a cooperation with broadcasters look like?
René Steinbusch: Currently, Sat.1 has launched the new and bold show “Volles Haus” with us. For this, we integrated our location here in Hürth into ProSiebenSat.1’s editorial and production network in order to automate processes and enable clients to collaborate across locations. This means, above all, exchanging data but also creating uniform communication channels. This sounds quite simple as a requirement at first, but from a technical point of view it’s obviously something that takes a lot of time and is complex, especially with live broadcasts. All this is also much more important for our customers than discussing whether a program should be produced in UHD/HDR. Ultimately, it’s about production efficiency and reliability.
Competitors like TVN and Plazamedia have recently focused on building virtual / XR studios. How do you assess the trend of implementing productions with LED or green screen and augmented elements?#
René Steinbusch: We in the group are following that with great interest. For our original, classic core business at EMG Germany, i.e. entertainment and game shows as well as magazine programs, I don’t see the trend at the moment. Real decoration is still front and center there, and I think that will remain the case for some time. It also needs to have a strong, real benefit for our customers. There are areas where it makes sense at the moment, but especially in the entertainment sector, the added value and efficiency is not always realizable.
How are technical decisions made within the EMG Group? Are there aligned procurement measures?
René Steinbusch: The investment decisions are now made entirely at group level with the involvement of all country heads, including me. We discuss together which areas or which projects we want to invest in, and decide in consideration of the areas of technology, sales, production and finance. IP- and cloud-based technologies will certainly become more and more important for us in the future, not least so we can carry out remote productions if required. It’s also important to migrate more and more production control rooms, OB trucks and flight cases to the same IP production platform. But offering the customer a technology just because you have it is outdated. It’s about offering a complex broadcast solution in which all areas interlock. This can be an IP-based solution, but it can also be legacy technology. It’s much more about the purpose for which technologies are intended and what added value new investments offer.
What role does the OB truck business play for EMG in general and for EMG Germany in particular?
René Steinbusch: Within the group, the area of outside broadcasting is by far our strongest. In this respect, it’s a central aim and also a challenge for me to make us significantly more tied to the group in this area. For the time being, however, we will continue to focus on studios. We have an excellent infrastructure in Germany with very many, very good service providers. And of course you have to include that in the evaluation. Nevertheless, we regularly evaluate the outside broadcasting unit within the group. We’re currently looking more in the direction of cloud and remote infrastructures. We believe that in this vertical, EMG Germany can better play to its strengths as a competent production set business, coupled with international remote and connectivity know-how.
To what extent will trends such as remote or environmentally friendly productions have an impact on the outside broadcasting business?
René Steinbusch: I think we in Germany still have some catching-up to do on the topic of ‘green production’. That doesn’t just relate to outside broadcasting, though, but all other areas of production, like studio operations for example. So, the overarching theme for us is the sustainable connectivity between production locations and media houses. If, as I have just mentioned, we can link editorial and production systems with each other, so that colleagues in Munich can participate remotely in a production that’s taking place here in Hürth, that is a great win, not least for the carbon footprint. This idea has also led us as the EMG Group to bundle all activities that have to do with data connections and transmissions in the ‘EMG Connectivity’ business unit. In conclusion: if we fundamentally network better, that’s a crucial advantage for every production but also for the environment.
Author: mebucom.de / Niklas Eckstein
