Sep 20, 2019

Plenty of talk about Connected TV, brand safety, and OTT.

Over the next few months, the streaming market will be flooded with new services. At the upcoming Advertising Week, attendees will get a glimpse into what this future of increased fragmentation will mean for advertisers and marketers and discuss how to best reach viewers using new ad technology.

Taking place from September 23 to 26, Advertising Week will feature speakers from the advertising, marketing, media, and tech space, including celebrities and public figures Gwyneth Paltrow, Serena Williams, Gary Vaynerchuk, Chris Christie, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. Judging by the panel rundown, key topics include the collection and application of consumer data, the latest and most popular apps new apps like Tik Tok, and the continued rise of gaming.

In preparation for the event, we asked a list of panelists what they'll be paying attention to. Here’s what they told us:

Sarah Rosen, Head of U.S. Entertainment Partnerships for Twitter Sarah Rosen, Head of U.S. Entertainment Partnerships for Twitter

"The center of gravity is the audience: who they are, how their behaviors are changing, and how we are reaching them."

Sarah Rosen

Head of U.S. Entertainment Partnerships for Twitter

What everyone will be talking about: Streaming services. NBC just officially announced Peacock, Disney is launching its Disney+ streaming service this fall and BET is launched its own streaming service – BET Plus – just days before Advertising Week. As more established brands venture into the world of streaming, I expect to hear lots of conversation about how existing streaming services will be impacted and anticipating where there opportunity is for marketers to jump in.

We’re in a fascinating time in the industry and the center of gravity is the audience: who they are, how their behaviors are changing, and how we are reaching them. I really want to dig into how we’re keeping up with consumer attention, whether that is leveraging influencers, embracing the passions of communities, or getting the interest and loyalty of Gen-Z consumers. We’re always trying to break new ground at Twitter and these are moments to really understand and start thinking ahead to what things will look like in 2020.

What she’ll discuss: I will be on stage with Univision, discussing the content partnership we announced with them during our NewFronts presentation focused on the US Hispanic audience. Univision continues to be the premiere destination for all things US Hispanic and by partnering with them, Twitter is able to super-serve this audience with premium content around the topics they love. We will be sharing a bit more about what our partnership looks like, what the US Hispanic audience and conversation looks like on Twitter, and why authentically engaging with this audience is an increasingly important focus for us.

Panel: “LIVE Digital for the Superfan” 9/26 @ 12:30 p.m.

Jo Kinsella, EVP & Chief Revenue Officer, TVSquared Jo Kinsella, EVP & Chief Revenue Officer, TVSquared

"The next phase of growth for TV is not just about attribution, it’s also about performance."

Jo Kinsella

EVP & Chief Revenue Officer, TVSquared

What everyone will be talking about: TV’s transformation. What digital brought to the market years ago is finally becoming table stakes for TV. Advertisers have been asking for proof of performance and TV ROI for years now, and there’s finally a big light shining on the publishers, networks and cable operators to make that ripple across the ecosystem. Newer forms of TV content, such as OTT, is helping to put performance front and center. The next phase of growth for TV is not just about attribution, it’s also about performance.

What she’ll discuss: As an industry, we will have a much better chance of being successful if we can come together to make a new market for TV. Ratings and traditional linear are not the only games in town. We know that and we’ve proven it. The new currency is performance, and whether you’re an advertiser, agency, network, cable operator or streaming service, we need to get behind that and make it so. Throughout the entire Future of TV track, common themes will focus on data, measurement and content-delivery channels, which are all important variables, but they are not the keys to success. During our panel, “TV’s Race to Performance: Walk, Crawl, Run,” I want to identify the elephant in the room that’s holding TV dollars back, and prove that performance trumps all. We need to be comfortable with transparency, a new level of accountability and changes in transactions, standards, and currencies.

Panels: “TV's Race to Performance: Crawl, Walk, Run” 9/23 @ 5:20 p.m.

From TV to Digital- and Back: Why DTC Brands Rewrote Their Media Strategies” 9/24 @ 1:30 p.m.

Maggie Mesa, Mobile Business Development, OpenX Maggie Mesa, Mobile Business Development, OpenX

"CTV is coming, and the time is now to prepare and evolve your video strategies."

Maggie Mesa

Mobile Business Development, OpenX

What everyone will be talking about: Identity and people-based marketing is the topic that seems to be top-of-mind for everyone. Whether this is in video, mobile, or even traditional online display, there seems to be consensus in the industry that if we are going to collectively move spend away from the walled gardens onto the larger open web, we need to crack the code on identity and give marketers access to people-based marketing solutions that are similar to what they can get on Facebook.

What she’ll discuss: I am on a panel about Connected TV (CTV), where we’ll be talking about the streaming landscape and the latest in ad-supported video-on-demand. To summarize what I’ll say, though, I’d sum it up as CTV is coming, and the time is now to prepare and evolve your video strategies.

Consumers seem to be watching more video content than ever, yet they are watching it in different ways than they used to and this is something the advertising industry is still trying to get its head around. In my role leading the supply business at OpenX, I’ve had a firsthand look at this evolution, and I’m planning on talking about what lessons we’ve learned, what questions still need to be answered about CTV, what we expect going forward.

Panel:The Streaming Wars Paved the Way For An Ad-Supported OTT World” 9/24 @ 3:30 p.m. and “Mobile Journey Marketing” 9/25 @ 5:15 p.m.

Karen Phillips, Executive Vice President, Ad Solutions, Viacom Karen Phillips, Executive Vice President, Ad Solutions, Viacom

"We’ll be hearing a lot about diversity, both as it relates to the workforce as well as purchasing behavior and media consumption."

Karen Phillips

Executive Vice President, Ad Solutions, Viacom

What everyone will be talking about: We’ll be hearing a lot about diversity, both as it relates to the workforce as well as purchasing behavior and media consumption. And, I’m hoping to gain new perspectives around many of the key topics we discuss daily, including audience trends, delivery, and measurement.

What she’ll discuss: On Tuesday, I will be discussing why Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) brands are coming to TV to grow reach and scale. It’s a compelling topic and something that Viacom has really leaned into as our DTC clients look to effectively reach and engage audiences everywhere. Whether it’s through digital, influencer marketing, experiential or branded programming, Viacom has the marketing solutions to connect brands with their target consumers across multiple touchpoints and our DTC clients see great value in this approach.

Panel: “From TV to Digital- and Back: Why DTC Brands Rewrote Their Media Strategies” 9/24 @ 1:30 p.m.

Scott Rosenberg, GM/SVP Platform Business, Roku Scott Rosenberg, GM/SVP Platform Business, Roku

"We believe all TV will be streamed and with that all advertising will be streamed."

Scott Rosenberg

GM/SVP Platform Business, Roku

What everyone will be talking about: A large discussion at Advertising Week will be centered around more relevant and targeted TV advertising to a growing audience that can no longer be reached via traditional linear viewing.

I’m excited to hear industry experts discuss this fundamental shift in TV, content and the rise of new streaming services. It’s a great time to have a dialogue for what it means for TV advertisers as they look to compare linear and OTT campaign performance and the ability to directly measure ROI.

What he’ll discuss: There’s a growing opportunity for marketers to reach a large audience that is now consuming more than 3 hours a day on streaming. Marketers also need the right measurement tools in place to evaluate audience overlap and incremental reach. Roku has 30.5M+ active accounts and offers the most effective platform to reach cord-cutters (more than half are cord cutters or cord-nevers), in addition to robust targeting and measurement tools.

We believe all TV will be streamed and with that, all advertising will be streamed. As this shift continues, marketers have an incredible opportunity to reimagine and push the boundaries of traditional TV buying and ultimately drive the best experience for their brands and consumers. We are just at the beginning of this massive transformation.

Panel: “Unlocking the Power of Addressability for All” 9/24 @ 5:20 p.m.

Lisa Utzschneider, Chief Executive Officer, IAS Lisa Utzschneider, Chief Executive Officer, IAS

"We see tremendous opportunity with CTV as the latest forecasts show that ad spends on CTV will exceed $42 billion by 2023."

Lisa Utzschneider

Chief Executive Officer, IAS

What everyone will be talking about: CTV continues to be top of mind for advertisers and publishers.  We see tremendous opportunity with CTV as the latest forecasts show that ad spends on CTV will exceed $42 billion by 2023. CTV is a new world that marketers want to be part of.

We are looking forward to speaking with both marketers and publishers on the shift from brand safety to brand suitability. Our partners are looking for advanced technology to help address their brand safety concerns. Advertisers want the ability to be adjacent to content that makes sense for the brand and publishers are looking for a tool to optimize their content to achieve better ROI.

What she’ll discuss: We’ll discuss the current CTV playing field and hear from our panelists on the future of the space, both in terms of emerging players, as well as digital and linear convergence. We will also discuss how industry leaders can work together to outsmart emerging threats like CTV fraud and why partnerships are essential to build scalable solutions in new environments, such as CTV.

Panel: “Connected TV: The Next Battleground For Ad Fraud” 9/23 @ 2:30 p.m.

Jeremy Verba, GM & VP, VUDU Jeremy Verba, GM & VP, VUDU

"We see that consumers are willing to accept a reasonable amount of advertising in exchange for free or reduced-price content."

Jeremy Verba

GM & VP, VUDU

What everyone will be talking about: A big topic this year at Adweek is going to be the increasing fragmentation of streaming services, and how advertisers can most effectively find their potential customers with so many more platforms popping up what seems like every day. Advertising Week is great because you always walk away with inspiring new ideas from innovative thinkers in the industry.

What he’ll discuss: We’ll be talking about the evolution of TV viewing behaviors. We see that consumers are willing to accept a reasonable amount of advertising in exchange for free or reduced-price content. With audiences expecting more control over when and what they watch, free ad-supported content is going to be key for advertisers to reach savvy consumers. And that’s where Vudu comes in, because we have Walmart’s first-party data that allows for unprecedented audience targeting and ad-effectiveness tracking—with over 10,000 free, ad-supported titles already available on Vudu.

Panel: “Calling All Cord Cutters” 9/25 @ 5:30 p.m.

Beth-Ann Eason, President, Innovid Beth-Ann Eason, President, Innovid

"More will change in marketing in the next 24 months than has in the last 15 years."

Beth-Ann Eason

President, Innovid

What everyone will be talking about: Brands must grow and those that put the customer in the middle of their communication strategy and customize their creative to engage them with the most relevant messaging regardless of the platform will create the strongest economic value for customers.

More will change in marketing in the next 24 months than has in the last 15 years. Marketers are using data thoughtfully to drive business outcomes. Many are embracing the concept of leveraging technology to both build a brand and drive to action in the same ad. The majority of the top 200 television with whom we work are on par with DTC brands that create and engage consumers on a one-to-one basis to build a relationship. I look forward to being inspired and learning more about the creative ways this is happening.

What she’ll discuss: We will be discussing how to tell stories that are relevant to consumers regardless of platform.  First-party data is gold for a brand marketer and we will explore how brands are using that to create more relevant messaging regardless of where the customer is in the purchase funnel.

Innovid is leading the conversation about connected TV by bringing together thought leaders throughout the industry to share the promise and the challenges. I hope to continue to gain insight regarding what marketers believe is possible when TV is delivered digitally so that we might continue to build the products and services to deliver on the vision.

Panels: “The Future of TV Is Now: How Brands are Scaling Success in Connected TV” 9/24 @ 10:30 a.m.

Rethinking TV: Driving Growth, Relationships and Experiences Through Data” 9/25 @ 10:30 a.m.

Val Bischak Val Bischak

"I expect there to be a lot of discussion around streaming and what’s ahead in this space."

Val Bischak

Executive Vice President, Ad Solutions, Viacom

What everyone will be talking about: How to navigate a fragmented landscape—I expect there to be a lot of discussion around streaming and what’s ahead in this space. I’m hoping to hear from other leaders in the industry and really digest their perspectives so that I can apply these learnings to my approach in the coming year.

What she’ll discuss: I’ll be on a panel at Female Quotient lounge discussing leadership and the monetizing content panel on Thursday. While the conversation in each of these panels will be distinct, I think both panels will ultimately touch upon what it takes to be a leader in a complex landscape.

Panels: “The Female Quotient — The Messy Middle Mindset - How We Learn to Lead” 9/23 @ 11:30 a.m.

Masters of Monetizing Content” 9/26 @ 9:30 a.m.