While over-the-top services offer the promise of more targeted and addressable advertising capabilities for content providers, measurement and tracking challenges often get in the way, particularly for smaller content companies, said industry insiders at the Over The Top Video Executive Summit.
In theory, OTT services should be able to tap all of the advertising targeting capabilities of digital, said Susanne Mei, vice president and general manager of Meredith Corp.'s PeopleTV, during a June 5 panel at the OTT Executive Summit. Organized by the OTT Executive Magazine, a free quarterly publication, the annual conference is focused on OTT business models and trends.
Today's reality often includes navigating a host of technical difficulties related to viewing content on various devices, Mei said. For instance, a content provider might complete a data fix tied to a Roku device but then encounter disruption in information flowing from an iOS app, or have to deal with fraudulent URLs and passwords, Mei said. Like fellow Meredith property SI TV, PeopleTV has secured carriage on fubo TV, a sports-oriented virtual programming distributor.
Manpower issues also drive many content providers to launch subscription video services rather than ad-supported vehicles, Mei said. Services like CBS Corp.'s digital news service CBSN have been successful in part by tapping the corporate infrastructure and a sales force well-versed in the serving and trafficking of ads. Smaller companies can’t draw on such resources, or may not be able to avail themselves of programmatic advertiser options, Mei added.
Inderpreet Sandhu, manager of TV platform at Alphabet Inc.'s Google Inc., said the availability of content on varied linear and digital platforms provides advertisers with multiple options to reach consumers. But that variety also makes it more challenging to reach some consumers.
Although many programmers are looking to sell schedules based on audience-based targets rather than on buys secured against traditional gender and demographics, Sandhu said that Nielsen Holdings remains the backbone for much of linear TV currency. That is not the case with newer media options, as varied standards are in play when it comes to digital and OTT offerings. As such, much education remains in terms of getting digital buyers to think like TV buyers and vice versa, according to Sandhu.
Denise McManus, general manager of TEGNA Inc.'s KMSB and KTTU, said advertisers are "looking to us for answers" about evolving consumer viewing habits, but the conversion to digital is not as easy one would think. She noted that broadcasters still show documents to the Federal Communications Commission noting when an ad ran, and advertisers want similar verification for digital and OTT platforms, relative to viewability and ad completion.
"That's part of the dichotomy right there, and one of the reasons the shift to OTT advertising has been slower than expected," she said.
Nevertheless, McManus said an increase in data-driven video buys are inevitable and represent an opportunity for stations. "With more data, that shift is going to happen," she said.
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