From an outsider's perspective, Jason Wise, director of the SOMM movies and founder of SOMM TV, has been able to find stories in the world of wine that interest a broad audience. To control more of the content pipeline and how the shows are distributed, Jason founded SOMM TV. Using "Somm" as more of a curator, SOMM TV has wine at its core and covers food, travel, and other alcohol, making it appealing to a broad (and younger) audience. Learn more about the business of wine films in this episode of XChateau! Detailed Show Notes: SOMM movie (2012) - Genesis of the movieMade when he was fresh out of film school (where he didn't focus on documentaries)Met Brian McClintic, who asked him to watch their tasting practiceJason found the practice similar to a sporting eventMet Ian Cauble and found his determination to become a Master SommelierThe success of the filmThe obsessive personalities made the filmBuilds to an actual event (the MS exam)The wine industry was ready for something like the movieNot a "wine film," a different way of looking at wineIntroduced a new group of people who can tell you what to drink (vs magazines)Documentaries became popular with NetflixNot made by wine people, the outsider perspective made it enjoyable for outsidersMedia business modelMovies usually have a distributorTheaters are a big marketing arena for wineiTunes - make a % of revenueNetflix - pays the distributor a fixed fee; if put on the 1st page, it can reach millions of people. It often pays based on what it costs to make. They can own rights outright or rent the filmAmazon - get paid 6+ months after it's up, get a tiny cut of incremental revenueYouTube - don't make any money onCreated SommTV to control more steps in the business model - more control of content pipeline, partnerships, and a place to premiere new films (e.g., SOMM 4)Before Covid - events were a big part of the businessMedia platformsHulu - Jason's favorite, takes the biggest swings in contentStars - has the best moviesNetflix - very careful; content is very similar to each other; often licenses something then makes their version if it works (e.g., Uncorked is a similar series to Somm)Cost of making filmsBig range - SOMM 2 ~$100k vs ~$850k for another wine film made by someone elseDocumentaries - can be millions, when there's real music, at least $500kDo not pay people to be in the filmSommTV business modelEmployees on salary, which is unusual in film90% original contentIt started with originals and, now, trying to license other contentFocused on wine, food, and alcohol; food is going to be a big partIt started the streaming service because it's an underserved audience, and wanted to super-serve themContent pipeline - they would ideally love to have new content every dayHundreds of thousands of subscribers (as of Jan 2022) - believes the potential audience is in the millions"Somm" is defined by Jason as someone who curates - wine at the center, but food, travel, etc…surrounding itPricing - $6/month, $50/yearLower cost doesn't necessarily mean more subscribersTechnology - a mix of own-developed and 3rd party apps; the goal is to bring the technology in-houseSommTV subscribersYounger, usually 24-37 years old (~70%), middle classScreenings/events - more varied audience52% male, 48% female - women growing fastKey markets - US largest by far, UK, Brazil, Nordic countries (not allowed in Iran or China) Get access to library episodes Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.