Need for entrepreneurship and innovative ventures to fuel growth of media & entertainment sector; Finding investors for distribution easier than for content, say experts

Need for entrepreneurship and innovative ventures to fuel growth of media & entertainment sector; Finding investors for distribution easier than for content, say experts

 
MUMBAI, March 13, 2014. The media and entertainment professionals feel that there is both the need and scope for entrepreneurial leaps and innovative ventures for the sector to grow exponentially. Whether it is the building of a business destination, private equity, angel investing, crowd sourced funds or reaching out to and engaging with audiences in new ways, there are plenty of avenues to be explored.

These views emanated from the session on 'Kickstarting Entrepreneurship and Innovation for the Media and Entertainment Industry' on Day 2 of FICCI FRAMES.

Mr. Arun Rangachari, Chairman, DAR Capital Group, pointed out that finding investors for distribution was much easier than for content. With innovative content model comes the risk of failure. He added that the investors who financed content invariably interfered with its creativity and this had emerged as one of the biggest challenges for the sector. Also, there is a need for institutional money to find its way into content generation.

Mr. Rajesh Sawhney, Founder, GSF Accelerator, emphasized that innovative content in new formats must be developed. He urged the corporate sector to support start-ups and entrepreneurs at their initial stage like his organization helps the start-ups by providing seed and acceleration funding.

Speaking on the distribution aspect, Mr. Naresh Patwari, Principal, Private Equity, ICICI Venture, said that a distributor must know how to reach out and deliver the content to his consumers. Innovation is not just about creating content but it also needs to look at how that content will reach the ultimate consumers.

Mr. Nicholas Watson, MD, Naseba, said that there is a need to invest in creative and seeding ideas, besides creating an infrastructure to support entrepreneurs. He recommended that entrepreneurs must expand their professional network and forge alliances across the border. Reaching out to experienced professionals, communicating and building relationship with them was the key to expand one's prospects.

Mr. Matei Paquin, Head – Project Development, Moment Factory, said that the challenge ahead for his organization was to be able to adapt to the rapidly changing sector and cater to the needs of the entrepreneurs.