As the scramble for television advertising dollars continues to heat up, many still think that premium content is the key to attracting both viewers and advertisers.
But, while content may be king, the signals that accompany that content are becoming increasingly important, too.
According to Jennifer Hess, VP, global ad operations, Fubo, discussions this year will likely emphasize the signals passed in the bid stream, which she believes will allow advertisers and publishers alike to benefit.
Reaching engaged audiences
Fubo’s Hess suggested leveraging first-party authenticated data to sharpen targeting.
According to her, investment should be focused on direct-sold deals, or one-to-one programmatic deals, with attention paid to ads.txt and sellers.json. These verification tools, she said, are necessary to ensure inventory is verifiable.
“They should test and iterate over and over again, because fewer and bigger isn’t always better,” Hess added.
Improving transparency in the bid stream
Hess noted that Fubo has always focused on transparency whenever possible, a reason it was included in The Trade Desk’s S&P 500 Plus. She argues many valuable signals are currently available in the bid stream for advertisers.
However, Hess added, the lack of standardization and nascent discussions around value exchange can inhibit visibility for the advertiser and also monetization for the publisher.
“I’m encouraged by the work the IAB is currently doing in terms of extended content identifiers,” Hess said. “And I ask that DSPs consider enhancing signals to publishers in the bid stream.”
Working together for mutual benefit
Hess highlighted the difficulty in measuring across streaming, linear, and digital platforms, noting that advertisers are justifiably seeking ways to better understand reach and frequency across all platforms.
According to eMarketer’s January 2025 report, US CTV ad spending is projected to increase by 15.8% in 2025, reaching $33.35 billion.
Hess believes the work being done by Nielsen One, VideoAmp, and Comscore is moving the industry in the right direction. She cautioned, however, that “those measurement capabilities aren’t inexpensive and there’s still work to be done.”
“Wouldn’t it be incredible if the precision that we’re currently receiving in targeting was also able to be applied to measurement?” Hess asked.
Fubo’s strategy for transparency and targeting
Disney announced a merger of its Hulu + Live TV business with FuboTV in January 2025, creating the second-largest online pay-TV company in North America.
In 2024, Fubo launched new ad formats designed to increase engagement and attention, Hess said.
“In partnership with EDO, we learned that partnering a pause ad with your video assets increases overall brand attention and engagement,” Hess said. “Moving forward, we’ll continue to bring new capabilities to market in order to benefit both the advertiser and the viewer.”
You’re watching “The Road to POSSIBLE 2025: Transparency and New Signals for CTV Success,” a Beet.TV Leadership Series, presented by Peer39. For more videos from this series, please visit this page.
