Robert Andrews

LONDON — What differentiates prime from sub-prime advertising inventory? Different media platforms can charge for ads in different and unique ways – but, in the end, value all comes back to content, says one ad-tech exec. “You may end up saying ‘my set-top box inventory is worth a lot more valuable than my IP inventory’,” says Thomas […]

LONDON — In a fragmenting media universe, how much budget should advertisers spend on TV versus digital? And what is the effect of that answer? Those are some of the thorny questions ad buyers are wrestling with, as they explore the impact of different channels – and Videology claims to have found the answers. It recently published research […]

LONDON — TV ads targeted through addressable linear platforms made up just 0.1% of total us TV ad spend in 2014, according to eMarketer. But the prospect is now at a “tipping point” that will push it faster and higher, with no turning back, says one exec in the space. Invidi EVP Michael Kubin tells Beet.TV, in this […]

LONDON — He’s a smart cookie who spent eight years running UK commercial broadcast leader ITV’s online commercial products. Now that he’s dedicating himself to the advanced-TV boom with ad-tech vendor Videology, how is Jon Block sizing up the sector? “In this modern fragmented data future … one person is a member of hundreds of different audiences,” Block, […]

Straight from striking an important partnership with Group M’s advanced TV division MODI Media, video ad-tech outfit Innovid is aiming to buddy up with the Goliaths of the industry – whilst challenging some of their more myopic tendencies. Innovid, which helps brands create, deliver and measure video ads for a range of 25 online TV platforms, was […]

LONDON — How many marketers are prepared to uncover the best ad-buying strategies, by stopping buying ads? That’s what Vodafone has done, and it claims to have boosted efficiency by 10%, leading to millions of pounds in spend being returned. The UK mobile carrier had partnered with ad-tech and data platform vendor DataXu to run a gamut of ad […]

LONDON — Irish public broadcaster RTÉ is readying to build the next generation of its multi-platform digital player brand, hoping summer-time tests of dynamic ad insertion can lead it to new riches in ad sales for live digital programming. RTÉ Player, a catch-up VOD service, first launched on desktop in 2010, later coming to mobile systems, cable and games consoles. Now the build of […]

For anyone who thought mobile ad blocking was a minority sport, last week’s new PageFair report about ad blocking on the mobile web was a shot across the bow. Drawing from a range of data sources, it claimed 22% of smartphone users globally are blocking mobile web ads, the vast majority using mobile browsers that block by […]

If you believe the oft-quoted PageFair data, 198 million around the world use ad blocking software, while 22% of smartphone users are even now blocking mobile web browser ads. Industry figures often advocate “better ads” as a solution to the problem. But the truth is, bloated and intrusive web pages drag on load times and weigh […]

LONDON — After revolutionizing online display and digital video ad sales, many expect so-called “programmatic” technology to shake-up the TV advertising industry, too. Even a sliver of the $79bn US TV ad industry would be worth a small fortune. But indusstry opinion appears divided on whether “programmatic TV” will take off any time soon. However, two […]

LONDON — Sky, the UK’s leading pay-TV platform is hoping to add more ad-tech services partnerships to a recent raft of deals, as it looks to expand on the effectiveness of its TV ad targeting and multi-screen ad sequencing technologies against the rise of online rivals. The satellite TV company’s own addressable TV offering, Sky AdSmart, has been live in the market […]

LONDON — The last couple of decades have been marked out by a rapid focus on digital media business models. Now digital is joining up with other media channels. But Mike Baker wants them all to blend together entirely. “The digital migration is not complete until it disappears,” says Baker, chief of DataXu, an ad-tech vendor bringing data science […]

LONDON — “Programmatic” ad trading technology emerged in to this world in the form of real-time bidding for ad spaces, on open, auction-based exchanges. So it’s a good job, for anyone vying for a piece of the TV ad industry pie, that times have changed. After all, that kind of ad buying system is anathema […]

LONDON — When buyers can successfully identify which ad impressions are really viewable, how will ad pricing change? For one thing, publishers are going to work a lot harder, according to one measurement exec. “Viewability has become the conduit for identifying, at least, some really good quality traffic that does the work,” says comScore advertising SVP […]

LONDON — Invidi should know a thing or two about the new science of addressable advertising. After all, the company was formed in 2000, and has been allowing advertisers to serve distinct ads to individual households ever since. Now it’s ready to close the loop back from TV to online media, too. Company chief marketer Fred Di […]

LONDON —  The recent acquisition of   SSP StickyADS.tv marks a global expansion of the company’s programmatic  TV offering, explains Thomas Bremond, managing director FreeWheel in the EU, in this interview with Beet.TV He explains that FreeWheel works with some 90 percent of U.S. broadcasters and operators.  And, the company is well entrenched in the U.K. […]

After Outbrain, Taboola, ShareThrough and other native advertising technology offerings, comes Plista. That is the German native ad tech company acquired by Group M two years ago. Since then, the agency’s Xaxis unit has been deploying native ad formats around the world. Now it is finally set to be deployed in the US. “We look forward to launching […]

LONDON — Many marketers have heard the phrase: “Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don’t know which half.” But Vodafone is trying to find the answer and eliminate the waste, using an exploratory attitude and with an ad-tech vendor in-tow. In this video interview, Vodafone head of brand strategy, […]

LONDON — Marketers have always regarded television as the big box that can reach a mass audience, the medium at the top of the funnel that fuels initial consumer awareness. But times are a-changing, and new technology means targeted television can serve advertisers just like laser-guided online ads can. “TV can absolutely be a performance medium,” according to […]

LONDON — The excitement in ad-land is all about the eventual appearance of “programmatic” advertising technology, which has already revolutionized online display and video ad sales, in to the $75 billion traditional television industry. But Caspar Schlickum doesn’t quite see it that way. While many tech vendors get excited about converting TV in to another programmatic video end point, […]