VideoNuze Posts

Evidence of Amazon’s expansive video ambitions is everywhere these days. The company has transformed itself into arguably the most influential industry player heading into the new year. There are now so many Amazon video initiatives, it’s getting hard to keep track.

First and foremost, it’s critical to understand the most important attribute Amazon is bringing to bear in video, that enables everything else and makes it such a formidable new competitor: its unique business model, based on Prime. As Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos explained in a Recode interview this past summer (see 37:32 cue point), Prime has become a “physical digital hybrid membership program that is unlike anything else.” Bezos clearly spells out how video helps drive new Prime memberships and retention. Prime members are more loyal to Amazon, purchasing more products.

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Brands, publishers and celebrities are all experimenting with Facebook Live, to see how live-streaming can help them connect with their target audiences. One interesting example that hit my radar is Lowe’s home improvement stores, which, this past Saturday night, used Facebook Live to broadcast a 45-minute show featuring HGTV’s “Property Brothers” to reveal a sample of Black Friday sale items.

In the video, Drew and Jonathan Scott open a series of boxes which often contain gentle pranks (e.g. a marching band, confetti, puppies, etc.) as well as actual products that will be on Black Friday sales (e.g. wine chiller, combination tool kit, Roomba vacuum cleaner, etc.). For much of the video, the brothers are ad-libbing, casually jibing each other and keeping the show moving along.

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I'm pleased to present the 348th edition of the VideoNuze podcast with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

We lead off this week with a cord-cutting update, based on reported Q3’16 results from the 11 largest pay-TV operators in the U.S. Video subscriber losses expanded a bit, to 255K in Q3 ’16 vs. 210K in Q3 ’15, with a continuing shift to cable operators and away from satellite and telco. As I wrote on Wednesday, depending on how the DirecTV Now, Hulu and YouTube skinny bundle launches in 2017, subscriber losses could accelerate.

We then shift to discussing new TiVo survey data that provides insights about online video viewers’ tolerance for ads. As Colin points out, despite respondents stating they have a low tolerance, their behavior suggests otherwise. That suggests there’s more potential for ad-supported premium video, in addition to the SVOD model that has thrived.  

Speaking of ads, I also point out the surprising research from Brightcove this week, that 46% of people who watched a branded video on a social platform then made a purchase. That’s the kind of performance that gets marketers’ attention and could portend an increase of more TV ad dollars moving to social.

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In another indicator of how TV and video advertising are becoming more data-enabled and precise, Videology announced a partnership this morning to incorporate Autobytel’s anonymized first-party buyer-intent data into its platform. Autobytel collects data from approximately 8 million consumers per month at its various properties.

The data will enable marketers to more accurately target consumers who are actually in the market for a car, using their own preferences for brands, price points and features. Given the longer consideration time associated with buying a car, marketers’ ability to implement specific “lower funnel” marketing messages aimed at in-market buyers is much more efficient.

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Two weeks from today will be our SHIFT // 2016 Programmatic Video & TV Advertising Summit on November 30th in NYC. We have an amazing program planned, with 50 speakers on a dozen meticulously planned sessions throughout the day.

Our morning keynote interview is with Dan Lovinger, EVP, NBC Sports Group Advertising Sales and our afternoon keynote interview is with Amanda Richman, President of Starcom USA. In addition, Lisa Valentino, SVP, Network Sales and Partnerships, Conde Nast & Chief Revenue Officer, Conde Nast Entertainment will be featured in an afternoon spotlight fireside chat.

To get a sense of how profound programatic’s role is poised to be, eMarketer is forecasting that programmatic video will rise from $6.2 billion in 2016 to $10.6 billion in 2018, while programmatic TV will increase from $710 million in 2016 to $4.4 billion in 2018. Clearly there are very strong market drivers at work, and I’m thrilled that Lauren Fisher, eMarketer’s senior analyst responsible for developing these forecasts will kick off SHIFT by presenting her analysis.

A reminder that all SHIFT paid attendees will be entered to win 1 of 3 Roku Ultra 4K players, generously provided by Roku. Additional discounts are available on 5-packs and 10-packs. And, startups and students can register for the reduced $245 ticket (contact me for the code).

In addition to SHIFT’s high-impact program, there will be abundant networking opportunities with speakers and attendees.

Please join us for what will be the highest-impact day of learning and networking around programmatic video & TV of 2016.

Learn more and register now!

According to industry data compiled by Leichtman Research Group, cord-cutting remained relatively modest in Q3 ’16, with the top 11 pay-TV operators, which account for approximately 95% of the market, losing 255K subscribers vs. 210K lost in Q3 ’15. As has been the trend in recent quarters, cable operators performed better than satellite and telco operators, which are disprorportionately bearing the brunt of the overall market’s slow, but ongoing, contraction.

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Here’s an eye-opening data point: according to new research from Brightcove, 46% of respondents said they made a purchase as a result of watching a branded video on social media (with 53% of U.S. respondents doing so). And another 32% of respondents said they considered doing so. The data shows the increasing importance of social media as an influential platform for marketers and the power of branded videos - as opposed to conventional 15 or 30-second ads - as a key purchase motivator.

With marketers increasingly concerned about ROI on their spending and consequently shifting dollars into digital media, the research only magnifies the challenge TV networks face in retaining advertisers’ allegiance.

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