This week the highlights from the world of video and connected TV advertising come courtesy of Google, Magna Global, Wuaki.tv, Accedo and ESPN. To stay up to date and have the latest industry news and insights delivered straight to your inbox, sign up for the weekly VAN newsletter.
Digital to Overtake TV in China this Year
China’s digital advertising market will overtake TV market this coming year, according to ‘China Market Profile’, a report produced by Magna Global Intelligence in partnership with UM China. The report, published by Digital Market Asia, says that total ad spend in TV has seen slow growth relative to competing media as viewing is plateauing.
However, the Chinese advertising market is an expensive and inflationary market, due to strong demand and restricted supply, and TV CPMs are often around $30 CPM, roughly on a par with the cost of television in the US or Canada.
Google Launches ‘Project Tango’, 3D Sensor Platform for Mobile
Google has launched ‘Project Tango’, a new software platform that will give mobile devices a ‘human-scale understanding of space and motion’. On the Project Tango site, Google say the technology, which makes over a quarter of a million 3D measurements every second, could be used to turn everyday spaces into gaming environments and for indoor navigation in large buildings or department stores, which could be particularly useful for the visually-impaired.
As with Glass, Google haven’t mentioned how the product could be used for advertising yet, but – assuming the technology gains tractions with consumers – it seems likely that this will become a new frontier for video. For example, a brand could offer in-store deals or provide contextually relevant information or advertising depending on a person’s location in a store, or create a branded game that people could play at home. Or perhaps it could be used for second screen advertising, where you can see objects around your living room that is relevant to the ad or the content being shown on TV.
Google and Magna Global Strike $100 Million Deal
Magna Global have committed to spend $100 million on Google properties including YouTube, its online display ad network and mobile platform, reports USA Today. The report featured an interesting quote from Torrence Boone, Google’s managing director of agency business development for the Americas, “There’s the notion of being able to tap into scarcity around inventory, which is critical and underpins the upfront model in TV. That model is porting over to digital.”
Wuaki.tv Launches on Samsung WatchOn App
Wuaki.tv, the movie and TV series streaming service owned by Rakuten, a Japanese ecommerce giant, has launched on Samsung’s WatchON app. The app allows users to begin watching a mobile on their phone or tablet and beam it directly to a big screen TV instantly. The WatchOn app will then switch to a ‘second screen’, providing viewers with details of the movie or TV show they’re watching – including synopsis, ratings, actor biographies and details of the cast and crew.
Accedo Builds Smart TV Sports Service for ESPN Brasil
Accedo have built an app for ESPN in Brasil, where the Walt Disney-owned company is one of the main sports cable television networks with 8.7 million subscribers. The TV network has broadcasting rights for many of the international competitions including, such as 2014 Fifa World Cup, UEFA Champions League, La Liga Premier League, NFL, NBA and MLB.
“Brazil ended 2013 with more than 17 million Pay TV subscribers, the largest Pay TV market in Latin America,“ commented Jerónimo Macanas, VP LatAm, Accedo. “With such a demanding TV market, new OTT services become the key differentiator for the viewers during sports events, like for instance the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. ESPN’s brand leadership in the region is the perfect partner for innovation around OTT in this fast growing digital market.”
Best of the Rest
Amazon Gets Its TV Box Ready, Again (Recode)
Why the ‘Good Internet’ and Programmatic Premium Will Cut Out the Rotten Core of Digital Advertising (Exchangewire)
WhatsApp – is it Worth it? (BBC)
King is Hoping to Raise $500 Million from IPO (Guardian)
