Ms. Koch, you were the director of re: publica until the end of 2020, and you have been the CEO of media: net Berlin-Brandenburg since the beginning of January. What are the main priorities for your new job?
We are still in the great transformation process and paradigm shift on the subject of digitization. I would like to continue to strengthen the digital industry in Berlin and the metropolitan region. Of course, this year everything is on the maintenance of the network. It is particularly important to me to keep in touch with the members, even if this is particularly challenging in the pandemic. In addition, I would like to focus more on media.net in the next few years and expand networking with business and politics.
Has there been a decline in media: net membership due to the effects of the pandemic?
There were a few layoffs, but surprisingly the size of the network has remained almost the same overall. There was always a lively exchange with the members, and many discussion formats could be continued digitally during the pandemic. There is no end to networking.
On Tuesday, the 2020/21 media barometer on the subject of “The consequences of the corona pandemic for the media, creative and digital industries” will be presented in the capital region. In your opinion, what is the key message?
It may sound like hubris, but the central message to me is that all the companies we surveyed between the end of August and the end of October saw the situation as an enormous opportunity.
Also: where do you see the greatest opportunities?
Clearly the development of new business fields. There, in particular, companies in the media, creative and digital industries have become very creative. The same applies to the restructuring of internal structures and workflows. Almost all of the companies surveyed are also working from home or have made such options available. And these possibilities will also be carried over into the future after Corona.
Is the industry agile enough?
A quarter of the companies surveyed even said that working from home has led to an increase in productivity. But the result in opening up new business areas is also astonishing. This is particularly important to 79 percent of small companies, but only 47 percent of companies with 100 or more employees. Aren’t they agile enough?
I have this assumption too, but to assess it more precisely, one would have to ask directly. That wasn’t part of the 24 questions. Large companies sometimes resemble large tankers that first have to adjust to such agility. In the talks on February 2nd after the presentation of the media barometer, however, we will question exactly that.
[Am Dienstag, den 2. Februar um 10 Uhr wird das diesjährige medien.barometer bei Alex Berlin offiziell vorgestellt und kann online im Livestream kostenlos verfolgt werden. Daran schließt sich ein Gespräch mit vier Vertreter*innen der jeweiligen Branchen an zur aktuellen Lage und was sich seit der Umfrage für die Unternehmen verändert hat. Mehr dazu finden Sie hier ]
The tenor of the annual study, in particular the business climate index for the media and creative industries, is still comparatively positive despite some massive slumps. How do you explain that?
With a value of 103 we are still in an optimistic area. This may have something to do with the fact that a second lockdown was not yet visible in late summer and autumn. Due to the restructuring, the development up to then had been much more positive than initially expected. There was light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak. Here, too, the question would have to be repeated through the second lockdown.
[Wie sah die Lage vor einem Jahr aus? Das Medienbarometer wird seit 2004 erhoben, so sahen die Ergebnisse für 2019/20 aus.]
Many companies seem to run out of steam in the second lockdown. What options are there to update the survey results before the next regular survey?
I think about how we could repeat that as easily as possible. The panel discussion on Tuesday will begin. I mean the need is great.
What signals are you currently receiving from the member companies?
Very different. The companies struggling with the transition – interestingly, the games industry is one of them (which previously held up surprisingly well, editor’s note) – are still faced with the task of keeping fixed costs at zero income. Here, too, we want to find out at the event whether the status is still the same as it was at the time of the survey.
Which areas do you have to worry about?
The music industry is particularly in need of support. Everything collapsed there. And the film industry is also idle, especially the cinemas, which are completely without income. This industry is doing badly, there is no other way to put it.
The situation: serious, but not hopeless?
I missed the 25th question for companies in the media barometer, the question of whether companies have to fear for their existence?
You’re right, but the business climate index could tell if the current situation and expectations were so bad. Then the index would not be 103 but significantly lower.
The radio stations, among other things, showed how important the subsidies were.
As a result, these companies are doing comparatively well. However, the radios are not only being shot at by the pandemic. It is new media such as podcasts or platforms such as clubhouse that could overtake them.
Much of the funding worked well. Where do you need additional help?
The survey shows that investment subsidies and tax incentives are particularly needed. The emergency aid and short-time work allowance were very well received. In this respect, it is also about expanding the existing funding measures. The fictitious entrepreneur’s wages for self-employed individuals have not yet been properly implemented.
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What can media: net do there?
We are the interface into politics. To do this, we query the situation of the member companies like a seismograph, bundle it and then try to get as much attention as possible in politics, but also in the media.
Last year you converted re: publica, Europe’s largest digital and social conference, into a purely digital event in a snap. What can you take with you for your new job?
With the digital re: publica we wanted to find out what is possible under the new conditions. The biggest challenge today is that we are in “zoom fatigue”. We are a little tired when it comes to these online formats. No matter how well a conference is digitized, no matter how great the tools, it does not replace interpersonal encounters. Networking is a format where people meet people in order to hear nuances. With this knowledge I go into designing my new job. In other words: I’m not a fan of the fact that everything is digitized away that is not on the trees with three.
