VideoNuze Posts

I’m pleased to present the 415th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

Colin and I were both at the NABShow in Las Vegas this week. I was producing the Online Video Program once again, which featured 30+ speakers on 8 different sessions. On today’s podcast, I share some of the highlights of the keynote session with Christy Tanner, EVP/GM of CBS News Digital, who oversees CBSN, the 24x7 OTT news service. CBSN has an average viewer age of 38, which is 20 years younger than the average CBS News viewer.

Christy explained how the CBSN team collaborates internally with its focus on news/facts vs. punditry. She also noted that 50% of consumption is on connected TVs, with 30% on desktop and 20% on mobile. CBSN is an example of how OTT is giving traditional media a whole new way to connect with viewers.

We then turn our attention to some of Colin’s takeaways from the show, including Android TV deployments and the value of open platforms, how operators are broadening their focus to broadband/OTT as viewers are increasingly assembling their own preferred services and the growth of live-streaming.

Listen in to learn more!

 
Click here to listen to the podcast (21 minutes, 39 seconds)

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

Yesterday I produced the Online Video Program at the NABShow in Las Vegas. It was a great day of learning, with 30+ speakers on 8 sessions focusing on the rise of OTT. There were many highlights, but to be brief, below I’ve summarized 5 soundbites that hit my radar:

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On behalf of 4C, I’m pleased to invite VideoNuze readers to attend a closed-door VIP breakfast session in New York on Thursday, April 19, “The Modern Microscope: Using Data to Predict Marketing Success.”

At the event, executives from global brands and agencies, along with press & analysts, will gather to hear from industry experts including:

- Terry Kawaja - Founder & CEO of LUMA Partners, who will discuss how technology is changing to empower marketers to reach their audiences

- Susan Bidel - Senior Analyst at Forrester Research, who will share research and insights about where marketers are on this journey

- Seth Stephens-Davidowitz - New York Times columnist and bestselling author of Everybody Lies, who will explain how data and audience insights is helping marketers get there
 
The VIP breakfast will be at The Ace Hotel New York, 20 W 29th Street, on Thursday, April 19th, 8am – Noon.
 
Learn more about attending here.

12% of 18-34 year-olds in the U.S. are now subscribing to a skinny bundle such as Sling TV, DirecTV Now, YouTube TV, Hulu with Live TV or PlayStation Vue, according to new research from Leichtman Research Group. This group accounts for 53% of adults who subscribe to a skinny bundle. Just 3% of people 45+ take a skinny bundle.

The data is part of LRG’s first survey on the topic, so there aren’t any trend lines available. Skinny bundles have been around for several years, and multiple analysts have estimated there are somewhere between 4-5 million U.S. homes now subscribing. It’s still very early days for skinny bundles as there’s been very little mass marketing to date.

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I’m pleased to present the 414th edition of the VideoNuze podcast, with my weekly partner Colin Dixon of nScreenMedia.

DVDs have been fading for years now, as viewers shift to streaming alternatives. This week marked another milestone in that evolution as Oppo, which made high-end DVD players, announced it was shutting down its manufacturing. Colin shares the statistics on DVDs’ decline and how inexpensive smart TVs and connected TV devices that support both UHD/4K and HDR have gained share.

However, the downside of streaming UHD/4K content is that it uses up a ton of bandwidth. Colin shares his personal story of almost exceeding his 1 TB/month data cap and the math behind how easy it is to do that when consuming UHD/4K content. He also explains the challenge of controlling the quality of what stream is delivered and how to overcome it.

Listen in to learn more!
 
Click here to listen to the podcast (21 minutes, 26 seconds)

Click here for previous podcasts

Click here to add the podcast feed to your RSS reader.

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

Comcast is continuing to add programming choices to its X1 set-top boxes, this morning announcing that the Sling TV international app will be made available. Sling TV international offers live and on-demand streaming of over 395 different networks, spanning 21 different languages. Pricing starts at $10 per month and new users can sign up on X1.

The addition of Sling TV international follows Comcast adding Netflix, YouTube, Pandora and NPR One to X1 over the past 6 months. Because X1 has a broadband connection and can run apps, it’s critical to Comcast’s strategy of bridging online content with traditional TV content. Late last year Comcast also announced deals with AMC and FX to offer subscription, ad-free services from both networks, exclusively for X1 subscribers.

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One of the biggest challenges all ad-supported video providers face these days is how to optimally balance the viewer’s and the advertiser’s experiences. Given the range of non-ad-supported outlets (e.g. Netflix, Amazon, etc.), viewers are getting more accustomed to the pleasure of uninterrupted consumption. Meanwhile, advertisers are more challenged than ever to have their messages seen and their spending optimized.

There’s probably no better example of how to achieve the balance than YouTube’s TrueView ad format, which all of us have no doubt encountered and acted on, since its launch 6 years ago. With the choice to skip the ad after 5 seconds of countdown, viewers feel like they’re in control. And because advertisers don’t pay unless a minimum of 30 seconds of the ad has been watched, the TrueView format is highly cost-effective.

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