SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – He said more broadcaster deals were in the works, and he was right.

A few weeks after discussing the emergence of new cross-screen TV measurement currencies at Beet Retreat, Michael Parkes’ VideoAmp has been picked by Warner Bros. Discovery to power new currencies for its 2023/24 TV upfront ad sales season.

In this interview with Beet.TV Events editorial director Jon Watts at Beet Retreat, Parkes, VideoAmp’s president, discusses what brands can gain from the new-wave of number-crunching.

Amping-up

“A year ago, we had one TV network, one agency holding company transacting on our currency,” Parkes says.

“This year, we have the top six TV networks all ready to transact on our currency.

“We have the top five holding companies transacting on our currency and, preparing for the upfronts, it’s a very different landscape.”

VideoAmp has now been selected by outfits including Warner Bros Discovery, Paramount and TelevisaUnivision to better measure their viewing. Parkes recently said: “We’re expecting roughly 80% of the premium video market will be able to guarantee on VideoAmp in the next upfronts.”

TV Tooling-Up For Upfronts With Alternative Measurement: VideoAmp’s Parkes

Over the last year or two, Warner Bros. Discovery has gone on an extensive exercise to identify suppliers for alternative measurement services, as it looks to improve on single-source and panel-based methodologies to give advertisers more certainty.

Today, it announced it would use VideoAmp and Comscore to help national advertisers transacting across its linear inventory and data-driven advanced advertising solutions.

Andrea Zapata, EVP, Head of Ad Sales Research, Measurement and Insights at Warner Bros. Discovery, said it is part of providing its advertising customers “optionality” in the currencies used for advertising.

Benefits of breadth

So, what can advertisers get from the new wave of counting? VideoAmp’s Parkes gave Beet Retreat a laundry list:

  • “More accurate data – using big data versus panels will mean you have different inputs into your media allocation decisions.”
  • “You’ll be able to optimize more effectively against reach and frequency.”
  • “You can look at going beyond age and gender to advanced audiences and you also get faster data. It’s not going to take 120 days to actualize campaigns.”
  • “That means you have less waste and you can optimize more effectively.”

He acknowledged some brands are uncertain about the current moment, which has seen a shake-up in the traditional counting systems used for US TV.

But he said brands themselves don’t necessarily have to work with a currency provider like VideoAmp – that can be left to their agency.

You’re watching coverage of Beet Retreat San Juan 2023, presented by LiveRamp, Madhive, Magnite, Paramount, T-Mobile Advertising Solutions and VideoAmp. For more videos from the Beet Retreat, please visit this page.

By Robert Andrews on @robertandrews