The Future of Video - why businesses should prepare for a boom in video usage

Technological innovation in communications, and new media platforms such as YouTube, Facebook and Netflix are collectively transforming the way video is produced, distributed, consumed, archived, and monetised. Because of this, video could dominate internet usage by individuals and businesses in the years to come - according to new Cass Business School research.

The implications are profound. Advances in video are leading to a fundamental shift not only in the business world and the economy, but also in culture and society. Advances in affordable virtual reality may transform the way we interact and share experiences with one another. Video is changing the rules about communication, relationships and the way we do business with each other. For business, video is no longer simply a marketing or training tool.

However, the research also finds that many businesses lack the expertise and systems to cope with increased demand, meaning they must commit significant investment over the next year to meet it, or risk being left behind.

The study The Future of Video, produced in association with video management company Imagen Ltd, is the first of its kind to focus on video usage in business.

Major findings of the report include:

• Video usage is forecast to constitute 80-90% of all global internet traffic by 2019 - a staggering one million minutes of video a second.
• Businesses are not ready or able to cope with a boom in video usage due to its data intensive nature and the problems that arise from managing digital assets.
• Businesses that don't invest in order to manage the transition to video effectively risk being left behind - 80% of businesses believe video content provides a competitive edge over competition.

Report author Professor Feng Li, Cass Chair of Information Management, said: "Much of the recent attention on video is about user generated content and how to monetise such content primarily through advertising. However, what have not been examined in detail are the opportunities and challenges for business use of video beyond advertising, such as the growing use of video in everyday communications within and between organisations, and the rapid development of video based operations and new business processes in different industries. How to use and manage video effectively has become a strategic issue for a growing number of organisations."

Tom Blake, CEO of Imagen said: "The democratisation of video production will continue to have profound consequences for business communication and operations. In the right hands, video is the most engaging and powerful medium for process management, marketing and knowledge transfer. However, it needs careful management and security controls, with an IT infrastructure fit for purpose. YouTube, Vimeo and others set a high bar for the user experience of online video. Businesses need to meet these established expectations, with controlled access and intelligence about the user engagement, in an environment which can cope with massive volumes of data."

The creation of this report was facilitated by Cass Consulting. To learn how Cass Consulting can assist your business, contact Clare Avery at clare.avery@city.ac.uk