Shelby Saville, chief investment officer, Publicis Media Exchange: We’ve seen more ad tiers opening up what were once closed ecosystems, which is good news for being able to connect with audiences as they move across screens. With this commitment to more ad-supported streaming, we’ll see more partnerships, collaboration and consolidation across players.
Dina Roman, svp of global ad sales, Fubo: The proliferation of ad-supported streaming, such as AVOD and FAST channels, has shaken up the streaming landscape over the last year. In a wave, streaming platforms have leaned into advertising to create additional revenue streams, including services that claimed they’d never accept advertising. This has widened the playing field for both the buy-side and sell-side.
Donna Speciale, president of U.S. advertising sales and marketing, TelevisaUnivision: We’ve seen more intention around authenticity, and that’s something we’re continuing to drive at TelevisaUnivision. When reaching a new audience, you must have an approach that’s real to that audience and their culture, language and experiences, and we’ve seen more marketers lean into Spanish language to engage with U.S. Hispanic consumers. It’s something I know we’ll see more of in 2024 and beyond.
Jon Steinlauf, chief U.S. advertising sales officer, Warner Bros. Discovery: Sports has become the most dominant genre in all ad-supported television. What has been most notable to me is the audience growth, the increasing ad demand and the use of more sports celebrities in ad creative.
Stacey Stewart, chief marketplace officer, UM Worldwide: The strikes really accelerated the shift out of linear, with dollars following the on-demand content that streamers can provide.
Matt Sweeney, chief investment officer, GroupM US: While the video landscape is complex to navigate, this year has given us valuable learnings about cross-platform planning to effectively reach and resonate with viewers, all in the name of audience-first advertising. Next year, we will focus on delivering our advertisers new and optimized ways to target, customize and measure effective creative and targeting, while still getting the best of TV’s trusted ability to reach and influence.
Carly Zipp, global director of brand marketing, Amazon Ads: When we talk about TV in 2023, we obviously have to talk about how the SAG and WGA strikes have shaped the industry. An interesting trend we saw during the strikes was how this shaped viewing habits. Normally, when we think of premium content, we think of those big-budget, scripted series. You think of Marvelous Mrs. Maisel or Daisy Jones & The Six (my husband’s favorite show this year).