Media technology companies hoping to score sales from TV station groups in the coming years will find themselves spending time not just with engineers, but with accountants as well.
“We work hand-in-hand with our technology partners on large capex investments,” explained Mike Tuvell, SVP and chief financial officer at Tribune Media. Speaking at the NAB Show Media Technology Business Summit on Sunday, April 23, in Las Vegas, Tuvell and two other station group CFOs explained just how much they want to know about a manufacturing partner before signing on the dotted line.
At the 29 TV stations owned by NBCUniversal, the budgeting for the coming year begins in June, when engineers at each outlet begin compiling and prioritizing lists of new solutions they would like. “We review every project over $2,500 and make decisions on them,” said CFO Christine Dorfler. “There is a lot of autonomy in identifying the needs, but from a group level we try to drive efficiencies.”
The group also wants centralized expertise when it comes to support. “We have people moving around and we don’t want them to have to learn new platforms.”
