Tassilo Raesig About Joyn: “Our Model Works”

Mr. Raesig, Prime Video, Netflix and Disney+ want to focus more on local content. How is Joyn positioning itself to compete with the US providers?

Tassilo Raesig: We are focusing on our product and want to continuously improve Joyn. We don't see ourselves competing with international players, as we are focusing on a strong ad-financed AVoD area that is very close to ProSiebenSat.1's free TV offering. The budget for many different streaming subscriptions is limited - but our main offering is free, so Joyn can always be added. We combine this offer with our exclusive subscription area Joyn PLUS+. The model works: Joyn is also well received by the advertising market.

As an aggregator, Joyn also offers a platform that bundles diverse content in one place. Our shareholder ProSiebenSat.1 recently announced that Joyn will act as the Group's central digital platform in future and that we will position Joyn even more broadly in terms of both target groups and partnerships: We want to develop Joyn into the largest, freely accessible entertainment and lifestyle brand for the whole family in German-speaking countries.

Joyn: First step towards free ad-supported streaming TV

Joyn has been around since 2017. What are the user figures in the free and premium segments?

Raesig: We are very satisfied with the development so far. The download figures for the Joyn app are already around 35 million.

Let's take a closer look at the content. Where does Joyn stand out from the competition?

Raesig: We combine the best of both worlds: easy access to TV formats such as “Germany's Next Topmodel” or “The Masked Singer”, a growing range of previews and catch-up content for the most popular TV shows, an extensive live TV section that includes ProSiebenSat.1 channels, German public broadcasters and many other content partners, as well as a large media library with on-demand content. We curate this content offering for our users: At the beginning of the year, we launched our on-demand streams, which draw on content that is available on demand and play it in a playlist based on a specific topic. We now offer almost 50 such streams, which are very popular. We are thus taking the first step towards free ad-supported streaming TV and paving the way for new ad-financed offers on demand on Joyn.

This offering is complemented by our Joyn Originals. Our existing in-house productions appeal to a very young target group. In 2022, we have planned major live events such as “The Great Fight Night”, “GET AWAY! VON MONTANABLACK” or ‘Eligella Winter Games’ with the biggest streamers in Germany. Our cult series “jerks.” celebrated its fifth season finale in 2023. With “INTIMATE.”, we also launched a new improv series that immediately became the most successful fiction launch of a Joyn original since “jerks.” has succeeded.

The US providers produce successful local content based on collected usage data. What role does such data play for Joyn in content production?

Raesig: We look at what our users like and what goes down well with our audience. We give formats time to develop and build a fan base. However, there are also other factors that play a role in content development. We have very close contact with our community and our creators, we value their ideas and suggestions and take this feedback very seriously.

Why are topics outside of the mainstream important to you?

Raesig: Thanks to the content of our shareholders and our content partners, we offer many well-known and popular formats on our platform. But our originals are also our flagships, sharpen our profile and give Joyn a face. In the past, we have focused on content for Generation Z and have established ourselves as a strong streaming partner for content creators and streamers. We give space to different topics and address a community that can hardly be reached anywhere else and for which only a few streaming platforms offer attractive content. We develop content that is close to the realities of our users' lives, give young talents a chance and realize bold ideas. We will continue to do this, but in future we will position ourselves even more broadly and want to become the steaming provider for the whole family.

Listening to trends and market developments: Together with the community to the format

Keyword format development. How much time does a format have to develop or, to put it another way, how do you determine whether a format is successful - by the size of the fan base?

Raesig: Of course, we think about what we expect from a format in advance. But that varies greatly from content to content. Of course, usage plays a role, but we give the formats time to develop. Even the most successful series have taken a while to build up a fan base.

We also pay attention to feedback from our community and the external impact we achieve. Of course, trends and market developments also play a decisive role in format development. There are therefore many decisive factors that confirm the success of a format.

You mentioned that you build up fan communities and maintain close contact with your community. How can we imagine this in concrete terms?

Raesig: The dialog with our users is very exciting and helps us to understand their needs. We have set up a community area specifically for this purpose. The close contact, regular feedback and requests help us to further develop our product and content accordingly.

In addition to this platform, we naturally also pay attention to all other channels of customer communication in order to get a complete overall picture. The idea behind this is simple: we want to offer a streaming platform that our users love. To achieve this, it is essential to always listen to their concerns and give their ideas space.

At the moment, the streaming market is still growing and new providers are constantly being added. When do you expect saturation?

Raesig: The streaming market is very fast-moving and dynamic, which makes it almost impossible to make concrete statements. However, now that more and more streaming providers are entering the market, I firmly believe in a consolidation of different content in one place. With Joyn as an attractive hybrid model with a very strong AVoD area and a small, exclusive subscription area, we already offer an ideal platform for this.