Robert Williams

CANNES – Advanced television is entering a new era as advertising on national broadcast networks becomes addressable, giving marketers a way to show different ads to different households during the same linear programming. Ad targeting similar to what advertisers have experienced on digital platforms is becoming possible in a medium that historically offered broad reach. […]

CANNES – The major disruptions of the past few years — including the pandemic, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and current worries about a recession – have spurred a creative flowering in the television industry. “We’ve been through so much that business problems are being approached with a high degree of creativity and open-mindedness that I […]

CANNES – High-quality content helps to engage consumers, improving the likelihood they’ll see advertising and even consider buying different products and services. These contextual ads are regaining importance as marketers confront the eventual disappearance of technologies like device IDs and tracking cookies that help with online targeting. “The way we do targeting today is going […]

CANNES – Worries about privacy and stricter data laws have pushed technology companies to give consumers better control over how their personal data are collected, stored and shared. These steps are gradually leading to the disappearance of device identifiers and tracking cookies that help marketers to determine whether they’re reaching the right consumers with advertising. […]

CANNES – Today’s consumers see or hear dozens of advertisements throughout the day among a growing variety of media channels, challenging marketers to measure the effectiveness of their campaigns. Attention metrics have become more significant, especially for any insights into driving business outcomes such as sales. “We can now trade on Attentive CPMs [cost per […]

The television advertising marketplace has grown more complex amid the emergence of digital video channels whose technology in many ways is more advanced than the legacy systems of traditional broadcasters. Buyers and sellers of advertising also are adopting systems to automate ad transactions in programmatic auctions, adding to the complexity. “I would look at it […]

The rapid growth of the streaming media audience in the past few years has pushed marketers to look for opportunities to reach these viewers. Media companies are answering that demand with the development of advertising formats that provide targeting at a greater scale. “We saw so much transformation coming out of the pandemic with all […]

CANNES – The television industry is open to finding multiple ways to measure how consumers are viewing advertising, especially as they spend more time watching streaming video. Multiple companies have emerged to provide the tools to set the value of ad transactions amid the shifting media landscape. “Measurement is confusing because there’s a lot of […]

CANNES – The gradual disappearance of tracking cookies and device identifiers is pushing marketers to find ways to reach the right consumers while respecting their privacy. People’s programming choices can tell a lot about their interests and mindset. Those data signals are renewing interest in contextual advertising. “We’re waking up to the fact that consumers […]

CANNES – Advertisers and their media agencies are keeping a close eye on the latest developments with measuring television audiences. They want metrics that accurately reflect viewership of linear and streaming platforms to help set the value of ad transactions, “currencies” in media industry parlance. “The good news for the industry is that the focus […]

CANNES – The popularity of streaming video on connected devices has led to greater fragmentation of the media marketplace. Consumers can choose how and when they spend time watching their favorite shows, and don’t have to tune into scheduled programming unless they want to see live news, sports or events. Amid this segmented viewing, brands […]

Connected TV gives people more control over the viewing experience with its on-demand features and growing selection of programming. That positive experience can provide a supportive framework for effective advertising. “We take the user experience very seriously, and what we can excel at as publishers in the CTV space is using all of the data […]

CANNES – Advertising campaigns are most optimal when they’re backed with a strong marketing strategy. From there, brands also can determine which media channels are most effective in reaching a target audience. “There is no great creative execution without great strategy,” Nancy Reyes, chief executive of Omnicom Group’s TBWA\Chiat\Day New York, said in an interview […]

CANNES – Consumers are bombarded throughout the day with dozens of advertising messages, making their creative content an important part of standing out in the crowd. With dynamic creative opitimization (DCO), the creative elements of an ad – including its imagery, text and layout – can be put together in real time and customized to […]

CANNES – Advertisers are demanding television viewership metrics that reflect the way people spend time with traditional linear TV and newer streaming video platforms. Comcast’s NBCUniversal has worked to provide insights into what’s currently achievable in audience metrics by sharing the results of a recent test-and-learn project that included 158 brands. Kelly Abcarian, executive vice president […]

CANNES – Putting brand messages next to content that appeals to an audience of likely customers for years has been the basic strategy for contextual advertising. That methodology was overshadowed as advertisers relied on technologies to track people’s online activities, but it’s making a comeback as consumers become more protective of their digital privacy. Contextual […]

CANNES — Brands are renewing their interest in contextual signals that indicate where consumers saw an advertisement as tracking cookies and device identifiers become less reliable for audience targeting. Artificial intelligence technology such as natural-language processing can help to strengthen these contextual signals. “It isn’t just about trying to attach your brand to specific keywords,” […]

CANNES – Consumers have a variety of ways to view video programming and listen to audio content, often at the same time as they keep their smartphones nearby while watching television. This behavior is challenging advertisers to measure not only if their advertising was seen or heard, but also if it captured the attention of […]

CANNES — People are dividing their time among more media channels and connected devices, pushing advertisers to demand better measurement of consumer behavior. The rapid growth in streaming, especially during the onset of the pandemic, heightened the need for a more universal media currency to help set the value of ad transactions. “There’s a number of […]

Millions of U.S. households are hooking up their televisions to the internet, opening up a chance to see a wider selection of programming from the growing number of connected TV apps. Those viewers expect to have a viewing experience that’s equal to or better than traditional television, though technical hiccups can still get in the […]