The investment in multi-platform strategies is an important decision for both
television producers and local broadcasters. The previous chapter examined a series of online distribution and advertising platforms media managers can choose from in order to seek additional commercial opportunities and revenue streams. Producers also adapt their shows online to extend their brand reach and to establish closer audience engagement through interactivity and social media. Most of all, media managers adopt these technologies in order to remain relevant to digital audiences and competitive within a crowded media market (Bennett, Strange, Kerr, and Medrado, 2012; Doyle, 2013; Sorensen, 2014). From an evolutionary economics perspective, Doyle (2010) believes that media industries which fail to adopt multi- platform technologies run the risk of missing out on commercial opportunities that can result in brand extinction.
To avoid this extinction that Doyle refers to, many producers of the food television show format invest in Video-On-Demand (VoD) platforms on their brand websites and via subscription sites such as Hulu, Netflix, and Amazon Prime to ensure that their shows are available and accessible wherever their viewers are.
To alleviate some of the pressures of licensing television formats, both globally and online, media brands have developed guidelines around online practice and
promotion. For example, the advent of the social media bible by format producers from Endemol Shine Group recognizes the need to support format licensees who seek online marketing assistance. This means that those who purchase a license from Endemol Shine Group will learn precisely what and how to write on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram with impact. These digital brand bibles are based on the successful social media campaigns from other adaptations of the same format and digital marketing techniques, i.e., keyword strategies and paid advertising
campaigns. Audiences feel more connected to the people they watch on food shows than ever before because they can communicate directly with celebrity chefs, judges, and contestants via social media channels. The producers of these formats have identified this and have encouraged the adoption of social media channels by their show contestants and judges. This notion reinforces what Barron (2015) expressed about the breakdown of the para-social relation distance between viewers and celebrities, which in this case would be star chefs and amateur talent. Fans feel closer to their favorite hosts, whereas the hosts still know relatively little about their online fans.
The decision to cast expert show hosts and judges to become brand ambassadors is a recurring finding in this thesis. This can be a measure to minimize risk, both on linear television and online distribution platforms. YouTube has allowed food show formats like Fox's MasterChef to take this one step further. Cooper referred to this phenomenon when he spoke about Gordon Ramsay on Fox’s MasterChef. He described how easy it was for Ramsay to amass large audiences on television and social media. His already established reputation pre-social media has heightened two-fold with YouTube and additional online platforms. According to Cooper, Ramsay is a renowned chef that viewers and online users trust and 'when you see Gordon cook, more people tune in' on YouTube and on the show (Cooper, Interview: Los Angeles, November, 2016).
180 This scenario is not limited to food formats. Based on their work on business
entertainment formats, Boyle and Kelly (2012) would also concur that social media networking allows viewers to experience closer engagement with onscreen
celebrities. However, closer engagement between audiences and food television shows can also be problematic to brands.
Onscreen talents are expected to be respectful online and not to reveal show spoilers until a certain duration after the season finale, as explained by the producer of BBC One’s MasterChef, David Ambler, in the previous chapter. When show contestants and hosts do not comply with these standards set out by the rights holders, format brands can encounter damage to reputation and backlash. Gregg Wallace, the co- host of BBC One's MasterChef, openly disregarded the network’s advice not to reveal show winners too soon after they are announced on live television. As a result, there have been multiple instances in which audiences who had not had time to tune in were unhappy with what Wallace had publicly posted to the winners. Staff members employed by food programs to monitor and create social media content are also expected to adhere to strict social media rules. Yet, there have been instances when social media managers create content that can be deemed
inappropriate by the brand. In South Africa, there have been many cases in which people who are employed to represent brands on social media say something online that was misconstrued and resulted in backlash to the brand. Katelyn Williams, the social media manager for Food Network and The Travel Channel explained how the brand is accountable for the actions carried out by their staff (Williams, Interview: Cape Town, May, 2016). Though the adoption of an interactive social media presence has become an industry standard by many food television shows, format producers must be mindful of the obstacles, including online monitoring, that are attached to these new technologies.
Similar to formatting linear television adaptations abroad, the investment in multi- platform technologies presents additional managerial challenges such as budgetary constraints and translation issues. Format producers must allocate enough budget to supporting online licensing deals and round-the-clock members of staff in order to support their multi-platform endeavors. Both Paula Deen and the former producer of FYI's Epic Meal Empire, Cash Hartzell, described how difficult it could be for food television show format brands to create digital or linear versions of their formats in the previous chapter.
Deen developed the first ever VoD platform based on a celebrity television chef,
The Paula Deen Network. She believed the network failed mainly due to the fact
that her fans were not willing to pay the monthly subscription fee. Since the cost to produce the network was in the millions, she eventually had to cease production. People are just not used to having to pay to access a channel unless it was HBO in the U.S. or Sky Sports in the UK.
The failure to adapt a digital first food show on television was also discussed in the case of the popular YouTube cooking show, Epic Meal Time. The format, Epic Meal
Empire, was purchased by FYI at MIPCOM. Even though the budget was
significantly increased in the linear version of the show, the popularity of the
YouTube version did not translate well to network television. While the main reason for why any show fails remains uncertain, Epic Meal Empire’s cancellation on FYI was mostly attributed to a storyline that strayed too far away from the original, including the change of medium, co-host, and the significantly extended length of time. Fans of the online version were accustomed to food challenge segments that lasted a few minutes and could be watched at any time online, so audiences found it difficult to adjust to an hour-long show airing at a specific time on television
(Hartzell Interview: Los Angeles, November, 2015). The producers of The Paula
Deen Network and Epic Meal Empire failed to overcome the issues that arise when
transferring a food format to and from linear and digital platforms because these issues are still very new and therefore hard to manage within the recent digital era. In time, we can expect that format brands will be able to make more informed decisions about the investment into their multi-platform strategies after rigorous trial and error.