VideoNuze Posts

Video adtech provider Beachfront will enable pay-TV operators to monetize their set-top box video on demand (VOD) viewing with ads sourced from programmatic video ad buyers. The move effectively bridges 2 worlds that have been mainly separate - traditional pay-TV VOD and real-time, dynamic digital ad demand.

Chris Maccaro, CEO of Beachfront, told me in an interview that in talking to various pay-TV operators and TV networks, under-monetization of VOD viewership remains a pain point, with up to half of all views not monetized optimally or at all. By enabling a select group of programmatic ad buyers to access this inventory, Beachfront is creating incremental VOD revenue.

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The biggest piece of news from last week’s Disney+ mega event was certainly the reveal of the service’s rate: just $7/month, or $70/year, and its implications for competitors, most notably Apple TV+.

Back in September, 2017, just after Disney CEO Bob Iger announced Disney was shifting its strategy toward a direct to consumer (DTC) model, and gave a preview of the massive trove of Disney/other content that would be included, I wrote that success for the service would be highly dependent on its price.

Would Disney+ be priced on the lower end of market expectations (I speculated about $10/month) to achieve strong adoption like Netflix has? Or would it be priced on the higher end (say $20-$25/month) in a market “skimming” approach like what HBO Now has followed? Given the money Disney would be foregoing in third-party distribution fees by going DTC, there was huge conflicting pressures on the pricing decision.

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I'm pleased to present the 462nd edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

Colin and I both shed a tear this week as YouTube TV raised its rate to $50/month (up $10 for those currently paying $40/month and up $15 for those like Colin and me who were grandfathered at the original $35/month price - a whopping 43% increase).

While Colin says he wasn’t surprised, I actually was. There’s been a huge window for YouTube TV to grab market share as other virtual pay-TV operators raised their rates and/or scaled back promotions. But Google has obviously decided it was done heavily subsidizing YouTube TV. Colin and I discuss the implications of the move and how the “new normal” in virtual operators’ rates will likely reduce cord-cutting.

Then we switch gears with Colin sharing his takeaways from NABShow - focusing on AI, cloud and live.

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Telaria and Hulu have released research finding that CTV advertising is helping Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) brands succeed with their marketing objectives. Importantly, the research notes that the reasons people shop DTC are similar to why they watch programming via CTVs: they care about value, convenience and choice. The implication is that DTC and CTV could create a virtuous cycle, helping the other to grow.

Examples of DTC brands include Caspar, Harry’s, Bonobos and others who create direct transactions with the buyer, primarily through mobile and digital content. DTC brands have been particularly successful in establishing brand awareness and initial scale via social media and banner ads. Jennifer Catto, Telaria’s CMO, believes they’re now primed to capitalize on CTV for big screen ads, since CTV “is accountable to perhaps more modest budgets through digital’s measurable, data and decisioning outcomes.”

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There are now approximately 31 million “cord never” adults in the U.S. - people who have never paid for a traditional pay-TV service - according to MRI-Simmons’s latest Cord Evolution research. This represents 12% of the U.S. population, an increase from 9% that MRI-Simmons found in 2017. Cord nevers have a median age of 33 and household income of $52,800 (up from $41,500 two years ago).

With the massive explosion of streaming options, it is easier than ever for viewers to avoid becoming a pay-TV subscriber. It is even more alluring for younger viewers for whom streaming has played a bigger part in their lives and who are less wedded to traditional channel surfing and linear viewing.

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I’m pleased to present the 461st edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

On this week’s podcast we first discuss highlights of FreeWheel’s Q4 2018 Video Marketplace Report. Once again FreeWheel’s data reveals important shift from linear TV to OTT consumption. Then we discuss a number of moves that Viacom is making into OTT, highlighted by its acquisition of Pluto TV. As Colin wrote, in many ways Viacom is on the front line of viewers’ shifts due to its traditional focus on younger audiences.

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eMarketer Principal Analyst Lauren Fisher will kick off the 9th annual Video Advertising Summit on May 29th in NYC, presenting key video/TV advertising data and trends. Lauren is an expert in adtech, programmatic, video, measurement and related areas. She has presented at prior VideoNuze events and has been a highlight.

As we all know, there are significant disruptions happening across the video/TV and advertising industries. Lauren will break things down, sharing the underlying drivers of change and how eMarketer forecasts these to play out going forward. Lauren will also focus on the current state and future of programmatic video and TV - data-enabling and automating ads - and what this means for industry participants going forward. Finally she will share her views on measurement, ad metrics and audience considerations.

Lauren’s presentation will tee up deeper dive sessions throughout the day. Lauren is among the 25+ industry thought-leaders confirmed so far to speak (more coming soon, along with full agenda). Other highlights include keynote guest Peter Naylor, Hulu’s SVP and Head of Ad Sales, and agency executives Jeremy Crandall (SVP, Publicis Media) and Christine Peterson (Managing Director, Mindshare) in a fireside chat with Matt Prohaska.

The Video Ad Summit is again shaping up to be a must-attend day of learning and networking for anyone with a stake in video/TV advertising’s success.  

Save $100 on early bird discounted tickets now and double your chances* of winning a 55-inch Roku TV, generously provided by Roku.

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

I’m pleased to present the 460th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

Apple partially pulled back the curtain on its video strategy this past Monday. In today’s podcast Colin and I dig into what Apple revealed, weighing the pros and cons of the strategy.

Apple is checking a bunch of boxes: bolster its TV app to try making it a hub for OTT viewers, enable third-party SVOD/premium TV subscriptions with Apple TV Channels, and tease its Apple TV+ SVOD/originals strategy with a bunch of A-list stars. It’s a start, but Apple is coming to video extremely late and Colin and I agree that all of the above taken together is unlikely to generate a lot of new services revenue in the short term with Apple facing a variety of challenges.

But…Apple has unparalleled user experience DNA, deep pockets, huge flexibility in how it bundles its forthcoming SVOD service with others (i.e. music, games, news) and of course has a massive user base to build from. And Apple is playing the long game, as it must in the new post-iPhone, services-centric era.

With Apple’s SVOD service, Disney+, WarnerMedia and who knows what else set to come to market in the next 6-8 months, it’s going to be a very busy year.

Listen in to learn more!
 
Click here to listen to the podcast (24 minutes, 44 seconds)

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