New Strategies for Old Dilemmas: Unraveling how Spanish Regional Public Service Media Face the Platformization Process

Abstract

The current global media scenario, dominated by private transnational conglomerates that operate in a multiplatform context, brings the debate on the future of public service media (PSM) back to the fore. These operators are facing a redefinition of their operational strategy, not only in their linear broadcasting but also in the online space. Through in-depth interviews with the digitization managers, this article studied the case of Spanish regional PSM to analyze how these corporations are adapting to the new scenario through the development of their own video-on-demand (VoD) websites. The results show that these corporations are in their infancy in the platformization experience, operating without a sound strategy. In addition, this study identifies how the dilemmas historically faced by PSM have been reconverted into emerging identity, economic, and legitimacy challenges that require new strategies.