I’m not the only new kid on the block at Mantis. While running my own consultancy over the past 18 months I have been working with international media company Viasat World to raise its profile and awareness with the international broadcast trade press. I’m so thrilled that they have decided to keep provision of their corporate and trade press office function with me and become Mantis’s newest client.

Viasat World operates a portfolio of pay-TV channels and Subscription Video On Demand (SVOD) services primarily in Central and Eastern Europe, Russia and CIS, plus Over The Top (OTT) and other digital services which are available globally. Its flagship factual TV channels Viasat Nature, Viasat History and Viasat Explore were joined 18 months ago by Epic Drama, its hugely successful period drama offering. In many of the markets in which it operates it is a household name, while in Russia it is the number one and two movie channel brand with its TV1000 brand.

Whilst Viasat World’s core business is clearly distinct from that of most of Mantis’s client portfolio, they share more in common than you might think. As a broadcaster, Viasat World has platforms which can reach huge numbers of people, and it takes this responsibility seriously – for example, rolling out a World Animal Day campaign on Viasat Nature to highlight the plight of endangered species, and showcasing strands of WW2 content in an important education push. In much the same way as tech companies who develop solutions for the public sector help people, a shared sense of social conscience means our values are well aligned.

Like the public sector, broadcasters are navigating their way through transformative times when it comes to how technology is changing the game. The media industry is incredibly dynamic and facing the headwinds of changing consumer habits such as binge-watching or multi-screen viewing tied to the rise of FAANG (Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Netflix, Google) playing in the content space. This makes for interesting times which require new approaches to cut through. In an overcrowded content universe where consumers are overwhelmed by the amount of choice, Viasat World is proving that its strategy of securing the exclusive rights to premium content and curating it perfectly on its channels and services for passionate and loyal audiences is a winning one.

Nana Rodaki will join me in supporting the account, and her knowledge of the international landscape plus Greek language skills will no doubt come into their own! With lots of brilliant panel appearances lined up for Viasat World executives at conferences such as NEM in Croatia and Webit in Bulgaria, plus news about new content and operator deals in the pipeline to announce – it’s great to have our finger on the pulse of an industry from which there is much we can learn that will help us support all of our clients.