• FreeWheel Powering NBCU's Digital/Mobile Video Ads

    Video ad technology provider FreeWheel added another big content provider to its customer roster yesterday, announcing that it will be powering video ads for a group of NBCU's broadcast and cable networks' properties.

    In particular, the deal also covers NBCOlympics.com, the network's destination for the London games this summer. FreeWheel noted that as a result advertisers will be able to make specific digital ad buys and combined broadcast/digital packages, which NBC will be able to deliver. This opens up potential targeting at a more granular level than has been available with traditional TV.

    With the deal, FreeWheel estimates it now serves online video ads for almost 70% of the cable TV channels found in a typical line-up. Cable networks have been embracing online video distribution primarily for shorter-form clips, although full-length programs are becoming more prevalent as TV Everywhere rollouts continue. This trend will ramp as viewers continue to migrate to iPads and other devices.