Earlier this week Reuters’ global editor Greg Beitchman told an industry debate on the future of video that the agency wants to make more of its raw film footage available to clients.
Speaking to Beet.tv in the video below, Beitchman explains how Reuters used social media, particularly Twitter, to source raw video footage from Iran during its coverage of the post-election protests:
Reuters could open up more of its raw video assets to publishers and clients, Greg Beitchman, global editor, told a roundtable discussion on the future of video today:
Enabling that kind of interactivity is crucial to us (…) People are accustomed to other types of video. These days we are seeing mobile phone footage and viewers are much more flexible and you can see that filtering back into broadcast scenarios.
Speaking from Reuters own experience with handling user-generated content, Beitchman said helping Reuters’ customers manage UGC was a big part of the agency’s video business. In the post-election protests in Iran last year, Reuters’ Tehran bureau collected some video footage, but the agency was directed towards other relevant videos by users on Twitter. These clips were verified and used by the agency as part of its reporting, said Beitchman.
Adapting to viewers’ video habits – whether that’s the length of the clip or the platform its consumed on – will be crucial for both Reuters own video and to the content they supply to third-parties, he added. The agency needs to be with clients as they are establishing their business models around video to make sure its content fits their needs.