Posts for 'Advertising'

As wireless carriers ramp up promotion of unlimited data and video viewing, mobile is poised to account for a bigger share of video viewing. As a result, understanding how mobile video will be fully monetized is becoming a more critical topic. The recent SHIFT // 2015 Programmatic Video & TV Ad Summit featured a session on programmatic’s role in mobile video advertising.

As the panelists explained, programmatic is a really good fit for mobile in a lot of ways, including that mobile generates a lot of actionable data, mobile inventory can be volatile due to unexpected viral hits or weather events rendering traditional upfront sales sub-optimal, and that there’s a long tail of publishers that don’t necessarily have direct sales teams. The session explored all of these topics and others such as the technical challenges of delivering mobile programmatic video campaigns, the impact of VAST 4.0, how data is being used to drive improved campaign results and more.

The panelists included Jeremy Hlavacek (VP, Programmatic, The Weather Company), Brian Rifkin (Co-founder and SVP, Video Sales, JW Player), Chip Schenck – VP of Programmatic Sales and Strategy, Meredith), Frank Sinton (CEO, Beachfront Media) and Gavin Dunaway (Editor, US, AdMonsters) as moderator.

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Eager to unlock the full value of their audiences, premium publishers are tapping into programmatic, using data and a variety of tools. At the recent SHIFT // 2015 Programmatic Video & TV Ad Summit we dedicated a session to exploring how this is all unfolding. Among the topics discussed was how programmatic aligns with direct sales, the evolving role of measurement, how to aggregate across all platforms and much more.

The session included Trent Anderson (Senior Director, Client Solutions, FreeWheel), Jason Barnett (Head of Programmatic, Teads.tv), Jason DeMarco (Director, Programmatic and Audience Solutions, A+E Networks) and Jana Meron (VP, Programmatic & Data Strategy, Business Insider), with Tim Hanlon (Managing Director, FTI Consulting) moderating. Follow the link below to watch the session video (31 minutes).

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Happy New Year and welcome to 2016. Changes in video advertising will continue to accelerate this year. To help understand the big themes and some of the particulars, I’m pleased to share videos of both keynote conversations from last month’s SHIFT // 2015 Programmatic Video & TV Ad Summit. The morning keynote guest was Donna Speciale, president of Turner Ad Sales (interviewed by Matt Prohaska) and the afternoon keynote guest was Lou Paskalis, SVP, Enterprise Media Executive, Bank of America (interviewed by Michael Kassan).

Each session is approximately 30 minutes, and I promise that watching them both is well worth an hour of your time, providing insights from both the buy and sell sides of video advertising. The big unifying themes are 1) Video/TV advertising is shifting to an audience-based approach, 2) Data and programmatic are enabling far more precise targeting, in turn driving up the value of viewer attention and ad inventory and 3) The viewer experience is poised to improve with fewer interruptions and more well-developed brand stories.

More specifically, Donna discusses, among other things, the extensive data investments that Turner is making, how advertisers and agencies are evolving to converge linear TV and digital buying, Turner’s plan to cut ad loads in half on truTV by Q4 ’16 and how to capitalize on mobile. Lou discussed, among other things, why mass advertising and the reach/frequency model is being replaced, the 3 biggest challenges facing marketers, how BofA is integrating data from across its business segments and why he believes GE is the most effective content marketer today.

Together, Donna’s and Lou’s insights provide an excellent strategic roadmap for where the industry is heading and what key challenges lie ahead. As you’re thinking about your 2016 priorities, I highly encourage you to watch their videos and learn from them.

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At the recent SHIFT // 2015 Programmatic Video & TV Ad Summit, the data’s vital role in programmatic was a recurring them. In a dedicated morning session, “Data is the New King: Re-Aggregating Audiences in the Programmatic Era,” Matt Spiegel, SVP/GM, Marketing and Technology Solutions at MediaLink led an insightful discussion

Participating on the session were Bob Ivins (EVP, Cross Media Business Development, comScore),
Brian Leder (SVP, North America Media, Razorfish), Manny Puentes – CTO, Altitude Digital and Julian Zilberbrand (EVP, Audience Science, Viacom).

Among the many topics the group explored were how to validate 3rd-party data sets, how data drives ROIs, the impact data has on content creation, new staffing requirements and lots more.

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Moat has extended its measurement and reporting capabilities to include Watchwith’s in-program advertising within TV shows, under a new partnership announced by the companies today. Moat will use its MRC-accredited platform to measure and report in-program ads’  aggregate audience time spent and user engagement with in-program ads. The reporting will be enabled on both desktop and in mobile video apps.

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Demand-side platform DataXu has published a new white paper on programmatic TV which provides great insights on opportunities and challenges going into 2016. The paper notes there’s still a lot of confusion around how to define programmatic TV and what the unique benefits are. The paper does a nice job of breaking down different types of programmatic TV opportunities and use cases. To make things more tangible, it also includes an auto manufacturer case study.

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I'm pleased to present the 301st edition of the VideoNuze podcast with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

First up on this week’s podcast, I share some of the key highlights from this past Tuesday’s SHIFT // 2015 Programmatic Video & TV Ad Summit. Perhaps the biggest takeaway is the diversity of perspectives on what programmatic means in video and TV. Most definitions focus on automation and data, but understanding which business model applies makes things fuzzier. I’ll have a lot more on SHIFT as I post the session videos in the coming weeks.

Next we discuss Digitalsmiths’ new Q3 2015 Video Trends Report which was released this week. Colin zeroes in on a couple of noteworthy data points: the soaring adoption of over-the-air antennas plus how these complement SVOD subscriptions and the wide variation of SVOD subscription rates by pay-TV operator. Colin has much more detail in his analysis of the report here.

Listen now to learn more!

Click here to listen to the podcast (21 minutes, 51  seconds)

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We had a jam-packed day at SHIFT // 2015 Programmatic Video & TV Ad Summit today, with 50+ industry leaders speaking on 14 sessions. There were tons of insights shared about what programmatic does and doesn’t mean for video & TV, with more than a few speakers saying they strongly dislike the term “programmatic” even being used in this context!

Our 2 keynotes guests, Donna Speciale, President of Turner Ad Sales, who was interviewed by Matt Prohaska, CEO and Principal of Prohaska Consulting and Lou Paskalis, SVP, Bank of America, who was interviewed by Michael Kassan, Chairman and CEO, MediaLink, totally hit it out of the park with their incisiveness and candor.

Many thanks to all of our speakers, our 18 sponsors and the hundreds of industry colleagues who attended.

I’ll have many more takeaways to share about SHIFT in the coming days and will also be posting all of the session videos on VideoNuze. There are also lots of tweets at #ShiftVideo2015!

The SHIFT // 2015 Programmatic Video & TV Ad Summit is tomorrow, Tuesday, December 1st in NYC. If you've been on the fence about whether to attend, this is your last chance to decide. Here's are some incentives:

Over 50 industry leaders will be speaking on 14 sessions. Executive speakers represent companies including A+E Networks, ABC, AMC Networks,  American Express, Assembly, Bloomberg Media, Business Insider, Fox Networks, Havas Media, Trilia/Hill Holliday, Horizon Media, Magna Global, MediaVest, Meredith, NBCU, RAPP, Razorfish, Roku, The Weather Company, Tribune Media, Truffle Pig, Viacom, VivaKi, Xaxis plus many others.

Our 2 fantastic keynote guests are Donna Speciale, President of Turner Broadcasting Ad Sales, who will be interviewed by Matt Prohaska, CEO and Principal of Prohaska Consulting and Lou Paskalis, SVP, Bank of America, who will be interviewed by Michael Kassan, Chairman and CEO, MediaLink.

Over 450 industry colleagues are registered, guaranteeing a premier day of networking and learning.

A special bonus will be Lior Manor, an internationally-recognized mentalist, who will be doing a 20-minute show during cocktails, courtesy of Jinni. He’ll also join me on stage briefly in the afternoon to provide a couple of teasers. It will be a lot of fun!

Many thanks to our 18 generous sponsors, Title Partner Adobe; Premier Partners Altitude Digital, FreeWheel, Jinni, TubeMogul and Videology; Headline Partners Beachfront Media, comScore, JW Player, Levels Beyond, Ooyala, Operative, Placemedia, SpotX and Teads.tv; and Branding Partners Alphonso, Cedato and Roku.

Please join us for this must-attend day of learning and networking!

Learn more and register now!

The program is now locked down for the SHIFT // 2015 Programmatic Video & TV Ad Summit on Tuesday, December 1st in NYC, with over 50 industry leaders speaking on 14 sessions. A ton of work has gone into developing the program, and I’m confident it will be the highest impact conference of the year focused on programmatic video & TV.

Speakers represent the full ecosystem, including A+E Networks, ABC, AMC Networks,  American Express, Assembly, Bloomberg Digital, Business Insider, Fox Networks, Havas Media, Hill Holliday, Horizon Media, Magna Global, MediaVest, Meredith, NBCU, RAPP, Razorfish, Roku, The Weather Company, Tribune Media, Truffle Pig, Viacom, VivaKi, Xaxis plus many others.

Donna Speciale, President of Turner Broadcasting Ad Sales, will be our morning keynote guest, interviewed by Matt Prohaska, CEO and Principal of Prohaska Consulting. Lou Paskalis, SVP, Bank of America, will be our afternoon keynote guest, interviewed by Michael Kassan, Chairman and CEO, MediaLink.

I’m also pleased to share that Lior Manor, an internationally-recognized mentalist, will be doing a 20-minute show during cocktails, courtesy of Jinni. He’ll also be on stage briefly in the afternoon which will spice things up. He’s an incredible entertainer and will add a fun element to SHIFT.

Many thanks to our 18 generous sponsors, Title Partner Adobe; Premier Partners Altitude Digital, FreeWheel, Jinni, TubeMogul and Videology; Headline Partners Beachfront Media, comScore, JW Player, Levels Beyond, Ooyala, Operative, Placemedia, SpotX and Teads.tv; and Branding Partners Alphonso, Cedato and Roku.

Please join us for this must-attend day of learning and networking!

Learn more and register now!

FreeWheel has released its Q3 ’15 Video Monetization Report (VMR), which reveals the continuation of a number of important industry trends. Both ad views and video views grew 28% vs. Q3 ’14, consistent with growth rates seen over the past few quarters.

Live video was once again the fastest-growing genre, with a 113% year-over-year growth, compared to 30% for long-form and 9% for short-form. Sports was again the biggest driver of live with 63% of sports video viewed live, compared with 17% of news video viewed live (other genres were in low single digits). News had the biggest proportion of short-form (76%), while Entertainment (60%) ad Kids (59%) had the biggest proportion of long-form.

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Fraud in video advertising is a significant problem causing billions of dollars in losses throughout the industry. To help drive a common understanding and gain consensus around what should be done, last Thursday Videology and White Ops released a valuable new white paper, “Eradicating Bot Fraud: The Path to Zero Tolerance.”

The paper explains all the different causes of video ad fraud, focusing on bots, or non-human traffic, which are considered the most pervasive type of fraud. Bots distort the market because they trigger an ad view even though no human being ever actually saw the ad. Bots are active in all types of video, from long-tail to premium. Videology and White Ops found that a higher percentage of traffic at night contains bots and that users age 65+ are 69% more likely to be hosting bots through an outdated browser.

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Today is the last day to get discounted early bird tickets for the SHIFT // 2015 Programmatic Video & TV Advertising Summit on Tuesday, December 1st in NYC. Early bird registrants save $100 on regular tickets and will be entered to win a 50-inch Sharp Roku TV, generously provided by Roku. Further discounts are available on 5-packs and 10-packs. And, startups and students can register for the reduced $195 ticket (contact me for the code).

SHIFT will feature 45+ industry leaders from ABC, Altitude Digital, Assembly, Bloomberg Digital, comScore, Fox, Havas Media, Hill Holliday, Horizon Media, Magna Global, MediaVest, Meredith, Operative, Razorfish, Roku, SpotX, The Weather Company, TubeMogul, Viacom, Videology VivaKi, Xaxis and others. Donna Speciale, President of Turner Broadcasting Ad Sales, will be our keynote guest, discussing the company’s data and audience-based buying initiatives.

Please join us for this must-attend day of learning and networking!

Learn more and register now!

For all the billions of dollars that are now spent on online video advertising, surprisingly little is known about viewers’ reactions and engagement with specific ads, beyond core metrics like view-throughs and click-throughs. To provide far greater insights about ads’ impact, Sticky, a biometric eye-tracking analytics company, is pioneering new approaches combining eye-tracking and facial coding. Jeff Bander, Sticky’s president, recently briefed me and shared data from campaign research it conducted with AOL.

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VideoAmp, a startup focused on optimizing cross-screen video ad campaigns, has raised a $15 million Series A round led by RTL Group, with participation from existing investors. The new funds will be used for product and business development. VideoAmp has raised $17.2 million to date. RTL is already active in the video space, having invested in both SpotX and clypd.

A video ad tech financing like this would have happened on a near-weekly basis just a few years ago, but with investor confusion about the space due to fragmentation (see the LumaScape), as well as uncertain market conditions, VideoAmp’s raise is quite unusual. Yesterday I spoke to VideoAmp’s CEO Ross McCray and its chief business officer, Jay Prasad, to learn more about company differentiators and how it succeeded with the financing.

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Beachfront Media has launched RISE, a full-service OTT platform for independent video creators to deliver their apps to connected TVs and mobile devices. Beachfront’s CEO and founder Frank Sinton told me that RISE is meant primarily for popular video creators who are becoming their own brands to reach audiences seamlessly across multiple devices.

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Reminder that there’s just 1 week left to take advantage of discounted early bird tickets for the SHIFT // 2015 Programmatic Video & TV Advertising Summit on Tuesday, December 1st in NYC. Early bird registrants save $100 on regular tickets and will be entered to win a 50-inch Sharp Roku TV, generously provided by Roku. Further discounts are available on 5-packs and 10-packs. And, startups and students can register for the reduced $195 ticket (contact me for the code).

There are now over 40 industry leaders scheduled to speak at SHIFT from ABC, Altitude Digital, Assembly, Bloomberg Digital, comScore, Fox, Havas Media, Hill Holliday, Horizon Media, Magna Global, MediaVest, Meredith, Operative, Razorfish, Roku, SpotX, The Weather Company, TubeMogul, Viacom, Videology VivaKi and Xaxis, with others to be announced shortly. We’re privileged to have Donna Speciale, President of Turner Broadcasting Ad Sales, as our keynote guest, discussing the company’s data and audience-based buying initiatives.

I hope you’ll join us for this must-attend day of learning and networking!

Learn more and register now!