Examples of Successful Digital Culture Initiatives

Copyright © 2012 by The Boston Consulting Group, Inc. All rights reserved.

Digital Culture
Examples of Successful Digital Culture Initiatives

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Executive Summary

BCG identified four ways that digital initiatives can benefit cultural institutions
• Increase access: digital initiatives can reach new audiences (e.g. kids/people with disabilities)
• Promote engagement: interactivity via social media/apps creates an immersive experience
• Enhance the experience: adding additional "unseen" information/background to physical art
• Generate new revenues: monetization of digitized content can drive additional revenues
This deck showcases selected international examples of digital culture initiatives

For more information, visit: http://on.bcg.com/1fzHsQy


1


The digital revolution is underway—and cultural institutions are missing out
• Explosive growth of digital devices, as well as high broadband penetration, has led to
consumers being "always on"—at home and on the go
• While other industries are leveraging digital possibilities, cultural institutions are lagging behind

BCG identified four ways that digital initiatives can benefit
cultural institutions

Promote
engagement

Increase access

Sydney Opera: Multimedia
educational offer attracts 46%
more young people to the
opera

Generate new
revenues

Enhance the
experience

Gürzenich Orchestra:
Worldwide unique
GOLive offer awarded the
Deutsche Bank prize for
innovativeness in 2010

The Met: $11M profit
from HD broadcasts
Broadway: Integrated
offer brings in 12 million
visitors and over $1B in
sales per year


2


QR codes in central park:
>1,800 visitors interacted with
digital content on one weekend

Overview: Examples of digital projects

Promote
engagement

Enhance the
experience


Increase access

Generate new
revenues


3

The Google Art Project: 36,000 works, 178 collections
10 million visitors in first week—Louvre visited by 9 million in one year

Information/
education

• Extensive background information and videos far
beyond what museums can provide
• "Discover" function shows works of art related to what is
viewed
• Works and collections are organized historically and
geographically and shown in context

Interaction

• Virtual tours through all participating museums are
possible
• Users can act as curators of their own galleries or
collections
• Works, galleries, and background information can be
shared over social media


Access

• Works can be viewed alone or virtually in the exhibition
room where they are located
• Possibility to compare works from different collections or
museums
• Gigapixel technology allows vivid, close-up viewing

The Google Art Project offers possibilities in the digital
world that would be unthinkable in the real one
Source: google.com

4

Sydney Opera has a strong multimedia offer
Own video platform with
• 14 own channels
• 9 different genres

• 8 cultural organizations


Tours through the opera
house by video conference
for school students

Investment:
~ 2M p.a. in
digital offering
Source: Sydney Opera

5

Enjoying theater online
Digital Theatre, Great Britain
Digital marketing
can be worthwhile

Productions from 15 British theaters available as live stream or download
• Theater made available outside London and Great Britain
• Over 50,000 live streams and downloads per month
• All videos are also available directly by television with a smart TV app
• Significantly more economical than a real visit to the theater, at ₤4-11 per film
• Special offer for schools


Digital Theatre is a privatesector company
• Founded in 2009 by a
theater director and film
producer
• Cooperation with 15 leading
English theaters
Digital Theatre produces
films and pays royalties to
participating theaters
• Production adapted to play
to convey live experience
• Performances are made
available online only after
theater run is over 
theater enhanced, not
replaced

Source: Digital Theatre

6

Video game music in classical arrangements
London Philharmonic Orchestra/Greatest Video Game Music


Like all works by the London
Philharmonic Orchestra, songs
are available for purchase on all
major platforms, such as Youtube,
Grooveshark, and iTunes

The London Philharmonic Orchestra plays music from internationally
famous computer games, tapping
new target groups

Due to huge success of first
edition, more songs offered

Source: YouTube

7

Information specially tailored to different target groups


24 Hour Museum, Great Britain

A homepage just for kids
for optimal appeal to different
age groups
Source: Company websites visited June-July 08, BCG analysis

8

Easy-access cultural content
Büchereien Wien (Vienna Libraries)

Some content is
available in sign
language


Multilingual to extend
reach as far as
possible

Content in different
colors and font sizes
for easy reading
even for the sight
impaired

Source: Büchereien Wien

9


Promote
engagement

Enhance the
experience


Increase access

Generate new
revenues


10

QR codes help visitors explore
The World Park, Central Park, New York

Numerous offers at stations
throughout the entire park,
for one weekend
• Visitors can discover
information, mysteries, and
famous film scenes
• On Arbor Day weekend in
2010, the QR codes were
accessed about 1,800 times

Source: http://www.theworldpark.com

11


QR codes invite visitors
to explore the park

When visitors become members....
Online fundraising by MoMA, New York


Homepage takes users to a special
membership and donation page

Comments and recommendations from other supporters and
a selection of donation models
Homepage leitet User auf
• MoMA is fully privately
spezielle Mitglieder- und
financed
Spendenseite
• In 2002-2004, $858M was
collected for expansion

Source: http://www.moma.org/

12

Democratization of reviews—when audiences play the critic
livekritik.de

The performance with
the best rating is
specially recommended

Direct booking
possible

Rating categories
"Entertainment," "Quality,"
"Value for Money," and
"Atmosphere"

Write a review or rate
an event

Source: livekritik.de

13


Search by type of
performance/exhibit
or keyword

Interactive app helps in choosing seats
Starlight Express, Bochum

Starlight Express app shows
a 360° panorama with an
interactive tour through hall,
helping users with the choice
of seats and tickets

Source: Starlight Express

14


Integrated QR code
reader can also be used
for other applications, to
the benefit of users

Audience involved by means
of games and app link to
social media


Promote
engagement

Enhance the
experience


Increase access

Generate new
revenues


15

App brings information to street level


Museum of London—Streetmuseum

• Free app for all standard operating systems
• Information and historical information from the location's area are shown via GPS or photos
• The Museum of London also offers apps costing ~₤1.50 for city tours with themes such as
"Dicken's Dark London"
Source: Museum of London

16

Historical books made available to all
British National Library, London

Historical documents housed
at the British Library made
available online for convenient
viewing at home


50 million historical books
to be digitalized by 2020

Digitalization first done
independently, but later
supported by Google

Source: Company websites visited June-July 08, BCG analysis

17

Short documentaries explain background
Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid


Special educational offer
with information on
general topics

Videos with background
information and interviews with experts on
current exhibitions

... und der Oper-O-Mat
empfiehlt entsprechende
Stücke aus dem Repertoire der
Komischen Oper Berlin
Source: http://www.museodelprado.es

18

Youtube channel with professionally produced videos
Staatstheater Mainz

Video productions are more than
pure previews, with the inclusion
of new content


Over 300,000 video
retrievals vs. ~190,000
real theatergoers per year

Preview videos are heavily
edited and build up theatrical
suspense

Source: http://www.theaterstiftung-mainz.de/stiftung-veranstaltung.html

19

How does a play originate?


National Theatre London

Video as backstage pass
• ~70 short films about everything that happens behind the curtains and before the premiere
• The audience gets a backstage look at props, stage construction, and costumes
• Actors tell about the challenges of certain plays and situations
• Real backstage tours several times daily for ₤5-8.50
Source: http://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk

20


Promote
engagement

Enhance the
experience


Increase access

Generate new
revenues


21

The Met pioneered live offers and focuses on wide
distribution
Pioneer in live offers

Benchmark in distribution

• Online ticket
sales
• Live in HD

Live HD
• Live HD broadcasts in movie theaters
in 60 countries
(including 15 in Austria)

• Free live HD broadcasts at selected
schools

• Video on
demand
• Donation
possibilities

• Online shop

Source: http://www.metoperafamily.org/

22


Sales-oriented navigation menu on homepage

At one click, classical music from all over the world
Medici.tv


Free streaming of 80 live
concerts per year

Archive with over 1,000 videos
on demand
• Concerts, operas, and
background information
• Access by subscription of
€7-13 per month or by 48h
loans starting at €3

Broad audience: Subscribers from 198
countries, 80,000 visitors per month

Source: http://www.medici.tv

23

Search, find, and purchase artworks
Art.sy—the Art Genome Project

Preview of major
works

•
•
•
•
•

Art.sy acts as
intermediary
between galleries
and collectors

Art.sy was established by a programmer and an art connoisseur as a for-profit company
Artworks are cataloged and linked with over 800 characteristics ("genes")
Users can search for keywords, artists, works, epochs, and artist influence
Art.sy also recommends works that could interest the user
Galleries can display works that are for sale—if sold, Art.sy gets a 3% commissions on the sale price

Source: http://www.art.sy

24


Information on
artists and works

Artists and works
can be viewed in
the context of
their time, style,
or themes

Experiencing famous operas in 3D movie theaters
Royal Opera House, London
Shown at over
2,000 theaters
around the
world

Production later
made available
on DVD

Source: http://www.carmen3d.com/

25


Opera professionally produced
in 3D with the stated goal of
boosting the Royal Opera
House's international renown

Examples of Successful Digital Culture Initiatives

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