CANNES — In an age where digital platforms promise unprecedented connection, many people are feeling more st year or two.” Live events offer a starkly different value proposition, according to Maureen Murphy, EVP, client partnerships, NBCUniversal, suggesting that live programming acts as a powerful counter-current to the isolating effects of algorithmically-curated content feeds. This focus on live content, which NBCU says constitutes [...]

CANNES — For many brands, premium video advertising occupies a specific role in the marketing mix, one focused on broad reach and the high art of storytelling. But for a performance-focused brand born in the digital age, that traditional separation is becoming obsolete — even the most cinematic, top-of-funnel video creative must be held accountable for driving tangible business outcomes. Now every [...]

CANNES - At a time when brand loyalty is fleeting and consumer attention short-lived, Comcast is doubling down on long-term consistency, cross-screen storytelling and agency collaboration built on trust. That’s according to Todd Arata, senior vice president of brand marketing at Comcast, in a conversation with Beet.TV’s Lisa Granatstein at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. Trust and chemistry are [...]

From the promotion around the #WakeMeInCannes sleep mask giveaway with United Airlines,  to the Beet art surrounding the Palais (video on this page) to our sunset beach party with Yahoo, Beet.TV was the subject of considerable Festival buzz. Beyond the buzz, Beet.TV went deep, cultivating industry conversations on its stage and studio. With video crews from Berlin and London, a stage and a [...]

CANNES - The biggest barrier preventing advertisers from investing more in premium video isn’t pricing. It’s clunky technology, said Dan Pantelo, founder and chief executive of creative automation platform Marpipe. Speaking with Beet.TV's Lisa Granatstein at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, Pantelo argued that modern marketers are used to the seamless self-serve interfaces of social platforms like Meta, TikTok [...]

NEW YORK - OtterBox is stepping out from behind its rugged reputation to tell a new story about its phone-protection products – one built not just on durability, but on connection, emotion and evolution. After years of dialing back on brand awareness media to manage operating costs, Otter Products is making a deliberate return to top-of-funnel marketing in 2025. “We’re intentfully investing in [...]

CANNES — With some industry counts topping 250 distinct media networks, brands and their agencies face a significant challenge in managing and optimizing campaigns across the latest fragmented ecosystem. This is the view of Tim Castelli, VP, global advertising sales, Instacart, who believes the industry is entering a necessary phase of consolidation. In this video interview with Beet.TV, Castelli argued that [...]

CANNES - Marketers’ obsession with first-party data is justified, but insufficient. That was the message from Matt Spiegel, executive vice president of TruAudience growth strategy at TransUnion, during an interview with Beet.TV’s David Kaplan at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. “You know, I think marketers are still really, really invested in understanding their own data, quote unquote, first-party data, [...]

CANNES - Walmart Connect is deepening its push into connected television advertising, fueled by its acquisition of Vizio and a growing appetite from brands for performance-driven media. Speaking with Beet.TV's Andy Plesser at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, Ryan Mayward, senior vice president of retail media sales at Walmart Connect, said the company is transforming how retail and [...]

CANNES -- Silicon Alley veteran entrepreneur Dave Morgan, has returned to Ukraine for his tenth visit in two years.  Beet.TV sat down with him last Thursday in Cannes, the day before his trip to the embattled nation. Morgan tells us that Simulmedia, the cross-channel TV ad platform he founded and leads, now has 40 workers in Ukraine. In this video, Morgan speaks [...]

CANNES - In a media world saturated by fragmented viewing platforms and real-time performance metrics, premium video still has a critical edge: brand safety, transparency and superior recall. But to stay competitive with social platforms, it needs to become just as easy to buy, measure and scale, said Mark McKee, executive vice president and general manager of Comcast’s FreeWheel. He made the [...]

CANNES -- The convergence of addressability and performance in connected TV is taking a step forward as the two largest streaming platforms join forces. A new partnership between Roku and Amazon is creating what executives describe as the first authenticated CTV identity graph covering more than 80% of all streaming, a development that promises to reshape how advertisers approach the medium. "Roku [...]

CANNES -- The future of shopping may involve conversations with bots, not browsing websites. Agentic shopping – where AI-powered agents handle purchases – is poised to become as crucial for brands and retailers as having a website is today. “I do believe in the future of agent shopping,” said Michael Komasinski, CEO of Criteo, in a video interview with Beet.TV at [...]

CANNES – Artificial intelligence continues to redefine modern marketing, and digital advertising agency PMG is doubling down on its belief that the future lies in platforms, not just partnerships. That vision is taking shape in the form of Alli Marketplace, a new martech exchange announced this week that is embedded directly into PMG’s proprietary operating system, Alli. The implications extend far [...]

CANNES - Television advertising is no longer just a vehicle for brand awareness. It’s now a measurable, performance-driven tool that delivers results across the entire marketing funnel, said Dawn Williamson, chief revenue officer of Comcast Advertising, in this interview with Lisa Granatstein, editorial director of Beet.TV, at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity. In an interview following the announcement of [...]

CANNES — The ability to reach consumers at the precise moment they're engaged in a specific activity is the holy grail for advertisers. For one rapidly growing commerce media platform, that moment happens millions of times daily during rides and deliveries. Positioning itself as a "commerce media company" rather than strictly retail media, Uber Advertising is leveraging its unique position in [...]

CANNES -- The mobility revolution has created more than just a convenient way to get from A to B. It's generated vast oceans of data about consumer behavior, location, and intent – and now those signals are being transformed into advertising opportunities. Uber thinks its wealth of first-party data – drawn from 170 million monthly users making over 3 billion rides [...]

CANNES — After TV viewing pivoted to on-demand, “live” content may be coming back — with a twist. Younger audiences are increasingly associating live experiences with social platforms and streaming rather than traditional broadcast events, said Megan Pagliuca, chief product officer at Omnicom Media Group, in this video interview with Beet.TV. She said this evolution means brands must adapt their strategies to [...]

CANNES — With so many retail media networks now taking off, how are ad buyers ever going to measure them all? Retail media networks' varying measurement approaches create significant complexity for marketers trying to evaluate performance across platforms, according to Amie Owen, global chief commerce officer, IPG Mediabrands. "I don't necessarily think it's a challenge, it's something we all have to solve [...]

The rise of streaming is ushering in a format revolution that echoes the early days of digital advertising. But getting the most out of CTV for advertisers, media companies, and consumers is going to depend on a number of choices by the industry at large, said Cory Greenberg, head of Streaming, North America, at Index Exchange. “Emerging formats are taking over [...]