Senior execs at Netflix must be rolling their eyes over the current state of digital video metrics: viewability levels, supposed standards and verification issues.
“Measurement? Who needs
measurement?” I can hear them saying. Netflix execs know who’s watching its TV content; they don’t need Nielsen to tell them. And the company doesn’t need to tell others about
its proprietary data.
Even better still: “Advertisers? Who needs advertisers?” Netflix doesn’t. Not when you have enough subscribers paying around $8 a month.
Traditional advertising-supported TV networks looked at the Netflix model and decide to hedge their bets by offering over-the-top digital video platforms of their own (though with some sort of
advertising support).
But that picture is still cloudy. Martin Sorrell, CEO of WPP Group, is worried. In an earnings call, he said -- somewhat alarmingly -- that some WPP clients are rolling back
their advertising commitments to online video because they can’t justify the investments based on current measurement.
That’s not good news. Could this snowball?
And then
there is the even scarier consideration: The rise of “malvertising,” where just accessing an ad-supported digital content platform can harm consumers’ hardware/devices.
Sorrell added that the current three-second viewability standard is “pretty ludicrous.” WPP Group, which has equity stakes in Rentrak and comScore, hopes to lead the charge in changing
that.
In the same earnings phone call, WPP wasn’t all that happy about traditional TV either. Irwin Gotlieb, chief executive officer of GroupM, WPP’s media company, said: "TV is
being damaged in its perception by poor measurement."
TV programmers aren’t going to wait around for metric issues, potential lawsuits from fraudulent media deals, and other issues to
resolve. If they can receive more of their revenues directly from consumers themselves, they’ll be happy with that. And perhaps less -- or no advertising? Hmmm... just let me know where to
send the check.