Talk to anyone around the online video ad space about key challenges, and the topic of audience measurement - or the lack thereof - quickly comes up. But in an interview I did at the Cable Show with Discovery's Chief Digital Officer JB Perrette, he re-frames the problem as actually not being with measurement itself, but rather that there isn't an accepted "currency" throughout the industry.

As JB explains, the industry is drowning in data, but since everyone has their own, there's no Nielsen-like standard yet to use for buying and selling of online video ads. JB notes Nielsen itself is trying to evolve, but is challenged with its current panel-based measurement approach. JB adds that changing a standard where billions of dollars are at stake takes time, but he's confident eventually it will happen.

JB also discusses Discovery's deal to acquire Revision3 and how Discovery is "buying the capability to develop content across all screens," how marketers are looking for authentic engagement opportunities, why "TV is the last frontier of difficult navigation," and the role that brands play in a world with infinite content choices. Watch the video (13 minutes, 46 seconds).