Posts for 'Advertising'

Video ad spending remains strong on the biggest social platforms, while connected TVs are gaining, according to a new Pixability survey of ad agency executives. 90% of agencies are running video ad campaigns on Facebook, followed by 88% on YouTube and Instagram. Hulu was fourth with 80%. Roku was at 58%, ahead of Twitter (42%) and Snapchat (36%). Amazon Fire TV lagged at 27%. Linear TV is used by 76% of ad executives surveyed.

All platforms look poised for continued success with 63% of agency executives saying they’ll increase video ad spending in 2020 by 1-10%, and another 20% saying they'll increase spending by over 10%.

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The final two sessions of the May 29th Video Advertising Summit included an interview with two agency executives discussing the convergence of digital and TV, and then a panel on best practices for monetizing the cross-platform experience.

Below is the agency session, which includes Jeremy Crandall (SVP, Advanced Video Solutions, Publicis Media) and Christine Peterson (Managing Director, Digital Investment Lead U.S., Mindshare), with Matt Prohaska (CEO and Principal, Prohaska Consulting) interviewing.

Below is the best practices for monetizing the cross-platform experience session, which includes Jennifer Cohen (SVP, Entertainment Content Partnerships, Ignite, WarnerMedia Ad Sales), Luis de la Parra (SVP, Partner Solutions, Univision), Gila Wilensky (SVP, Media Activation, North America, Essence) with Eric John (Deputy Director, Video, IAB), moderating.

Late last week, video adech provider Pixability launched its PixabilityOne platform that unifies video ad buying and campaign management across destinations and social media (e.g. YouTube, Facebook, Instagram) plus Connected TV (e.g. Amazon Fire). The goals of the new platform are to simplify audience targeting and campaign management at a time when video ad buying is more complicated than ever given the proliferation of viewing destinations.

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I’m pleased to present the 473rd edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

Connected TV is one of the hottest trends in the video industry today. So is mobile video, and with 5G rolling out and mobile-first services like Quibi launching, mobile is going to get even more attention.

But there is some conflicting data which Colin and I discuss this week. For example, a report from Extreme Reach this week showed that CTVs’ share of video ad impressions has grown to 49%, partly at mobile’s expense, and that 30-second ads which are CTV-friendly, now account for 69% of video ad impressions. Yet Colin shares Pew data that at least 17% of smartphone users now don’t even have a wired broadband connection, which likely means CTV isn’t meaningful to them. How can CTV and mobile  coexist and how should content providers be thinking about these trends?

Listen in to learn more!

 
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Longtime VideoNuze readers will recall that nearly 7 years ago I started espousing the benefits of being able to download long-form video to mobile devices, so consumption could continue when offline or when only spotty or expensive wireless connections were available.

TiVo pioneered this capability with its Stream device, which initially let users download programming from their TiVo to an iOS device. As a user, this presented the valuable benefit of unlocking all my recorded content to watch on my iPad or iPhone wherever I was (planes, trains, etc).

Over the years a variety of SVOD providers have enabled downloading; Amazon was an early adopter and Netflix a reluctant, but ultimately innovative, adopter. Others like HBO Now, Showtime, Starz, CBS All Access, CuriosityStream and Crunchyroll all now allow viewers to download and watch offline. At the recent launch event for Disney+, company CEO Bob Iger said everything in the service will be downloadable (which is going to make long car trips with kids far more pleasurable!). I’m assuming downloading will be a staple of Apple TV+ too.

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Nearly half (49%) of online video ad impressions in Q1 ’19 were delivered on connected TVs according to new data from Extreme Reach’s Q1 '19 Video Benchmark Report, which is based on the company’s proprietary ad server. CTVs’ 49% share in Q1 ’19 was up from its 31% share in Q1 ’18. Every other device saw declines in video ad impressions year over year: Mobile from 33% to 25%, Desktop from 24% to 17% and Tablet from 11% to 7%.

As Extreme Reach notes in its analysis, there are multiple tailwinds helping drive up CTV ads: Over two-thirds of U.S. households owned a CTV device by end of 2018, ad-supported services like Hulu, Pluto TV, Tubi, The Roku Channel, etc. are proliferating and growing their usage. vMVPDs like YouTube TV, Hulu with Live TV, etc are expanding their subscribers and viewing times with linear TV consumption. These and other factors are growing CTVs’ supply, while enhanced targeting/attribution are enticing buyers.

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Leading programmatic video provider Cedato recently launched its Video Content Unit (“VCU”) an integrated solution that aims to simplify publishers’ video creation and monetization processes. VCU can be enabled by publishers by adding a line of code to their web sites. Doing so incorporates the fast-loading Cedato video player and content feeds from Cedato’s syndicated video library and the Cedato Video Composer.

The Video Composer is a critical part of the new VCU. The Composer uses AI to quickly create customized video content from the publisher’s assets, and doesn’t require any dedicated editing or setup. The result is a high volume flow of proprietary content that is relevant for users and cost efficient to deliver via Cedato’s lightweight, fast-loading video player. Programmatic video monetization is powered by Cedato’s header bidding solution.

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Virtual pay-TV (or “vMVPDs”) providers already deliver live, linear and on-demand programming to millions of subscribers, creating a rich new source of targetable premium video ad inventory, often on connected TVs. But virtual pay-TV is itself in a state of flux, with providers revamping packages, evolving their marketing and raising their prices.

At the recent Video Ad Summit we discussed these dynamics on a session I moderated that included Hannah Brown (Chief Strategy Officer, fuboTV), Chris Maccaro (CEO, Beachfront Media), Matt McLeggon (Senior Director, Advanced TV Growth, SpotX) and
Beth Weeks (VP, Director Media, Digitas North America).

Some of the key takeaways included that virtual pay-TV operators are seeking more scale, especially to help educate ad buyers about why the opportunity is compelling (buy side education and overcoming fragmentation was a big theme), how important automation, content discoverability and viewer experiences will be for virtual pay-TV and how linear/sports remain an important part of virtual pay-TV’s appeal.

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Data has become the rocket fuel behind video advertising and an audience-based buying future – helping advertisers boost targeting for higher ROIs, while allowing content providers to propel the value of their inventory and transact more fluidly.

At our recent 9th annual Video Ad Summit, a panel including Natalie Gabathuler-Scully (SVP, Revenue Operations, Vevo), Ben Maughan (VP, Business Development, Product, and Client Services, Advanced Media and Advertising, TiVo), George Musi (EVP of Marketing Sciences, Citi, Publicis OneTeam) and Dan Punt (Senior Managing Director, FTI Consulting) as moderator, dug into the above topics and much more.

In particular, the panelists explored what’s involved in investing in a data strategy, the complexity of audience targeting models (and who does this modeling work), the incremental value of data when used appropriately and key challenges including many proprietary anonymous ID spaces that aren’t interoperable.

Data tends to be an overused word in the video ad business, but the panel demystified where data’s value really lies.

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At the recent 9th annual VideoNuze Video Ad Summit, connected TV was a major focus throughout the day. In a presentation, Telaria CEO Mark Zagorski shared research illustrating how connected TV enable customized ad experiences that are more enjoyable, especially for younger viewers, better conversion than social and higher purchase intent than linear TV. With 30% of U.S. households not reachable by linear TV, forecast to jump to 50%, Mark makes a persuasive argument about CTVs’ important role.

A related after lunch session, “Connected TVs Take Center Stage: What Does It All Mean?” delved even deeper. The session included Christina Beaumier (VP, Product, TV Platform, Xandr), Alison Levin (VP, Global Ad Sales and Marketplace, Roku), Harold Morgenstern (SVP, National Advertising Sales, Pluto TV) and Ken Ripley (VP, Sales, Newsy) with Howard Homonoff (Principal, Homonoff Media Group) moderating.

Alison noted that 30% of viewers’ time spent is now spent with CTVs, but only 3% of ad budget are. So there’s a lot of room for budgets to shift. Ken, Harold and Christina explained how today’s media plans must include CTV to be complete, especially given viewership fragmentation. They also discuss the value of brands, discoverability, data, a unified currency, attribution and more.

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I’m pleased to present the 471st edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

On this week’s podcast we first discuss local broadcasting’s video opportunity. Colin provides updates on an interview he did about Google News Initiative’s role. Then he shares a few takeaways from a panel he did, highlighting the new Sinclair OTT service Stirr. More broadly we explore how the combination of connected TV, longer engagement time and better monetization is laying the foundation for ad-supported original programming.

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Click here to listen to the podcast (23 minutes, 52 seconds)

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Advertising in mobile video is an important revenue stream for many content providers, so understanding how to optimize the viewer experience is essential.

At the 9th annual Video Advertising Summit on May 29th, mobile video advertising was the subject of a panel including Henry Embelton (Head of Ad Products and Revenue, Ellation), Dan Hurwitz (Chief Revenue Officer, Penthera), Bobby LaCivita (VP of Research and Measurement, Group Nine Media), and Colin Dixon (Founder and Principal Analyst, nScreenMedia) moderating.
 
Among the topics discussed were mobile video distribution in social vs. owned and operated properties, which video ad units work best in mobile video, how offline ad-supported mobile video experiences are being enabled, how mobile drives video consumption for younger audiences and key challenges in mobile video given the fragmentation across many different apps/services.

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The OTT era is challenging established premium video providers to adapt their businesses to a totally new set of ground rules. At our 9th annual Video Advertising Summit on May 29th, our opening panel shared their insights on the adaptation process and also what advertisers are looking for in where they allocate budgets in the OTT era.

The discussion included Rob Aitken (Managing Director, Deloitte Consulting), Danielle DeLauro (EVP, Video Advertising Bureau), Domenic DiMeglio (SVP, Distribution and Operations, CBS Interactive) and James Shears (VP, Advanced Advertising, Extreme Reach) with moderator Mike Shields (Shields Strategic Consulting).

A few key takeaways: premium video providers may be known for one particular business model today but eventually they're likely to utilize a variety of business models, live retains significant consumption and is a a critical part of the viewing mix even for OTT services, advertisers recognize live and on-demand are synergistic in terms of extending reach and attribution is an essential KPI for direct-to-consumer companies using TV advertising that traditional advertisers are emphasizing as well.

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Hulu is on the forefront of virtually every major streaming video trend, so the company’s success is a model for others to watch closely. At the 9th annual VideoNuze Video Advertising Summit on May 29th, we were privileged to have Hulu’s SVP and Head of Advertising Sales Peter Naylor as our keynote guest, who I interviewed.

Peter said that having a “viewer first” approach has been critical for Hulu. That means being respectful of the viewer experience, providing choice and control and capping ad pods at 90 seconds, among other things. Of Hulu’s 82 million monthly viewers, 58 million of them subscribe to a tier that includes ads.

Peter talks at length about his experience with advertisers and agencies and where they are on the learning curve of moving traditional TV budgets into streaming. He also cites direct-to-consumer, digital-native brands as leaders in being data and attribution focused, aligning them well with Hulu. We cover lots of other topics as well.

For anyone interested in learning how Hulu is driving change across the video landscape and what’s ahead, the interview is must-see.

Watch the interview now!

I’m pleased to present the 469th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

This past Wednesday was VideoNuze’s 9th annual Video Advertising Summit in NYC, and on today’s podcast Colin and I share a few of our initial takeaways (all the session videos will be posted over the next couple of weeks).

A highlight of the day was the keynote interview I did with Hulu’s SVP and Head of Ad Sales Peter Naylor, who started by noting the incredible evolution Hulu has experienced in 11 short years: from 100% free to 100% paid, from 100% desktop viewing to over 80% connected TV viewing. Peter said the majority of Hulu’s 83 million monthly viewers are in an ad-supported service. Focusing on being “viewer-first” has been critical: capping ad pods at 90 seconds, minimizing intrusiveness, introducing new formats have all played a role. (More on this session when I post the video)

Overall, Colin and I observed lots of enthusiasm for ad-supported OTT, with many speakers sharing that ad buyers and agencies are recognizing that especially to reach 18-34 year-olds, it’s essential to shift some spending to streaming. Mark Zagorski, CEO of Telaria, framed things well in his presentation: each of us will have a “portfolio of viewing” - paying for a handful of services, but  accessing many more which are free and ad-supported.

While brand safety, measurement and other considerations are still restraining some buyers, others, especially direct-to-consumer brands (e.g. Peloton, Caspar, etc.) are embracing streaming for its targeting and advanced attribution.

Lots more to come as I post the individual session videos.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (28 minutes, 24 seconds)

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Tomorrow is the 9th annual VideoNuze Video Advertising Summit in NYC. So if you've been on the fence about whether to attend, this is your final chance! Reminder, all paid registrants will be entered to win a 55-inch 4K Roku TV.

Over 30 executives from leading companies including Hulu, CBS Interactive, WarnerMedia, eMarketer, Roku, fuboTV, Group Nine Media, Publicis, Pluto TV, Mindshare, Vevo, Ellation, Univision, Essence and many others will share their insights.

In our keynote session I’ll interview Hulu’s SVP and Head of Advertising Sales Peter Naylor about Hulu’s “viewer-first” operating approach and how this has led to Hulu becoming a market leader in video advertising.

The Video Ad Summit will be an outstanding day of learning and networking for industry professionals. Don’t miss out - learn more and register now!

Reminder that the 9th annual VideoNuze Video Advertising Summit is next Wednesday, May 29th in NYC. There’s still time to register and be entered to win a 55-inch 4K Roku TV.

Over 30 executives from leading companies including Hulu, CBS Interactive, WarnerMedia, eMarketer, Roku, fuboTV, Group Nine Media, Publicis, Pluto TV, Mindshare, Vevo, Ellation, Univision, Essence and many others will share their insights. In our keynote session I’ll interview Hulu’s SVP and Head of Advertising Sales Peter Naylor about Hulu’s “viewer-first” operating approach and how this has led to Hulu becoming a market leader in video advertising.

The Video Ad Summit will be an outstanding day of learning and networking for industry professionals. Don’t miss out - learn more and register now!

I’m pleased to present the 467th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

This week the major TV networks presented to advertisers in the annual upfronts ritual. Among the key benefits being conveyed was brand safety; unlike digital platforms, TV networks are controlled and curated so only premium content is carried. Despite networks’ declining linear audiences, in the current chaotic environment, there’s reassurance in brand safety.

With YouTube, Facebook and others playing whack-a-mole to regularly tamp down controversial videos, advertisers face a dilemma of taking risks with digital platforms to target coveted younger audiences, or stay safe with network TV. For example, a recent Reuters article cited research that of 240 brands, 46% reduced their YouTube spending year over year, instead shifting some spending to networks' online properties. Colin and I discuss the complexities.

(Note: Brand safety will be a critical topic at the 9th annual VideoNuze Video Advertising Summit coming up on May 29th in NYC. Register now!)

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (26 minutes, 13 seconds)

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Today is the LAST day to save $100 on the 9th annual VideoNuze Video Advertising Summit on Wednesday, May 29th in NYC. Reminder, as a bonus, all early bird registrants DOUBLE their chance of winning a 55-inch 4K Roku TV.*

Over 30 executives from leading companies including Hulu, CBS Interactive, WarnerMedia, eMarketer, Roku, Cheddar, fuboTV, Group Nine Media, Publicis, Pluto TV, Mindshare, Vevo, Ellation, Univision, Essence and many others will share their insights. The program will feature a mix of keynotes, panel discussions, fireside chats, research presentations and case studies, covering the most critical topics in the industry.

One of the day’s highlights will be the keynote interview I’ll be doing with Hulu’s SVP and Head of Advertising Sales Peter Naylor. We’ll be exploring Hulu’s “viewer-first” operating approach and how this has led to Hulu becoming a market leader in video advertising.

I'm excited to have 10 industry-leading companies on board as partners, including Title Partner Deloitte Consulting; Premier Partners Extreme Reach and Telaria; Headline Partners Beachfront Media, Penthera, SpotX, TiVo and Xandr; and Branding Partners Brightcove and Roku. Come meet them!

The Video Ad Summit will be a premier day of learning and networking for industry professionals.

Don’t miss out - learn more and register now!

(*Early bird registrants get 2 entries for the 4K Roku TV drawing.)

I’m pleased to present the 466th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

Roku posted very strong Q1 ’18 results this week, with active accounts surpassing 29 million and streaming hours up 75%. On today’s podcast Colin and I did into all the relevant performance metrics to illustrate Roku’s astounding growth over just the past couple of years. Roku said it now accounts for 1 in 3 smart TV sold in the U.S. eclipsing Samsung for market leadership. With high profile streaming services from Disney, Apple, WarnerMedia and NBCU yet to debut, even more people will be rotating from linear/pay-TV to OTT, which will further benefit Roku.

Like Hulu, Roku finds itself in the industry’s sweet spot, with a large base of users actively consuming, creating a prime opportunity for advertisers to reach cord-cutters.

(Note: Roku’s VP of Global Ad Sales and Marketplace, Alison Levin, will speak at the 9th annual VideoNuze Video Advertising Summit on May 29th in NYC. Register now and save!)

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (21 minutes, 35 seconds)

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The VideoNuze podcast is also available in iTunes...subscribe today!