The term TV doesn't really apply anymore.
In the "olden days" of the media business, TV referred to broadcast on network television. That expanded to include cable, and most recently
it expanded even further to encompass online video when said video existed as an extension of network or cable programming on sites like Hulu. These days media buyers are looking at mobile
video, digital out-of-home and numerous other aspects of video as extensions of "TV," so how do you plan accordingly?
In the media business today there's a movement to just call it what it
is: digital broadcast. Digital broadcast is simply the broadcast of video content on any consumer screen -- whether a 105-inch screen in your house (yes, that size now exists) or a
2.5-inch screen in your pocket. The consumer doesn't really differentiate between screens, but advertisers could and should, because the experience of these formats is different and the
opportunity to message is different as well.
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Of course, this shift in thinking points out a tremendous missed opportunity in our business: that no one has stepped up to manage cross-platform
video ad-serving to the Web, mobile, set-top box and digital out-of-home. There are many companies looking to get into the space and even more are talking about how they'll be there, but no one
has accomplished this task yet. If I were DoubleClick or any of the traditional ad-servers, these relationships would be the focus of my attention -- but alas, that's a topic for an entirely
different column,so let's get back to the primary point of this session.
The opportunity for a publisher in this digital broadcast era is to quote a premium price for content based on
elevating points of differentiation. If content is served through a centrally located platform, publishers could determine its quality (professional, UGC, even based on ratings) and freshness,
along with the size of the screen. If they marry this information with the competitiveness of the location (how many ads are integrated into the broadcast), publishers could become very
adept at creating limited inventory packages with significant value for advertisers that even increase revenues vs. where they are now!
The shows themselves are the most important criteria,
but why not have these shows rated in real time, with pricing set in an auction model, or more in line with the Google algorithm for determining pricing based on audience and interaction? That
could create a model for traditional networks and other strong content producers being compensated for their true value, increasing as the audience increases.
The freshness of the
content is important for timeliness of the message delivery. Advertisers with a very time-sensitive message could be rotated in at a premium, and other advertisers would follow suit, paying a
premium when time matters.
If publishers could determine the size of the screen and limit the clutter, then a premium would be in line, because marketers wouldn't be lost in the shuffle.
Their messages would break through more often and be more actionable by the consumer, and they could align with the screen size to determine follow-up capabilities (mobile vs. PC vs.
television-based).
The last 10 years we've all heard whispers of the renaissance that is coming in broadcast and the problems with the upfront, etc. These are all potentially true, but
they still do not lend credit to the fact that "TV" -- or digital broadcast -- is still the most impactful, most important component of any marketer's budgets. With a couple tweaks in the
marketplace, things could get even more exciting!
What else do you see coming for the broadcast business?