In this week’s Week in Review: Ericsson denies merger with Cisco, Google Now offers programmatic ads and blocking bots increases brand engagement. To receive weekly summary of industry news and other VAN interviews and videos, sign up to the weekly Video Round-Up.
Ericsson Forced to Deny Merger
After last week’s cooperative technology partnership between Cisco and Ericsson was announced, Ericsson’s CEO, Hans Vestberg, has been compelled to deny rumours of a merger with Cisco. Vestberg said: “We note that there are rumors in the market regarding an acquisition of Ericsson by Cisco…The talks leading up to the partnership announcement have been ongoing for a year and there have not been any discussions whatsoever on a merger or an acquisition.”
Blocking Bots on Video Ads Increases Brand Engagement by 22 Per Cent
An advertising campaign with bot blocking in place improved brand engagement rates by 22 peer cent more than the campaign with bots still present, at a cost increase of only 2 per cent the “Eradicating Bot Fraud: The Path to Zero-Tolerance” white paper has revealed. Videology and White Ops produced the joint report, which is designed to help advertisers better understand the issue of ad fraud in video advertising and how they can fight back.
Google Now Offers Programmatic Ads for Native and Video
Programmatic ads for native content and mobile video publishers is now being offered by Google, the company has announced. Publishers, such as Google’s DoubleClick clients like eBay, can make native ad units available for programmatic demand on Google’s open-auction and private marketplaces. The feature is currently available in apps and will be available within a few months for cross-screen native ads.
Channel 4 LaunchesProgrammatic Video Exchange
UK TV broadcaster, Channel 4, has announced it is launching a video programmatic advertising exchange. From early next year, ‘Premium Video Ad Xchange’ will give all advertisers the opportunity to programmatically buy demographic audiences on All 4 across every device and platform.
Sky Media Pairs With Videology For Converged Video Ad Solution
Entertainment company, Sky Media, has partnered with software provider, Videology, in order to work together on a ‘proof of concept’ project to develop a Sky-designed programmatic system.
DISH Formally Rejects Charter/Time Warner Cable Merger
The DISH network has filed a formal response to the proposed merger made by Charter Communications, Inc. (Charter), Time Warner Cable, Inc. (TWC) and Bright House Networks (BHN). In its reply, DISH outlines how the applicants have failed to prove that this proposed merger is in the public interest and reiterates its call for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to deny the merger.
YouTube Launches Music Streaming App
YouTube has announced the launch of YouTube Music, an app that allows users to stream tracks and albums with or without video. The app, which allows users to stream tracks and albums with or without video, will be free for a limited time and users will be able to listen to tracks and watch videos while online.
Advertisers Spend 500 Per Cent More on Millennials
Advertisers spend 500 per cent more on millennials, according to advertising technology firm, Turn. The research shows that advertisers spend four times as much on display, four times as much on social, four and a half times as much on mobile and six times as much on video advertising aimed at millennials than on any other age group combined.
Location Influences Consumer Decision to Engage in Digital Advertising
39 per cent of UK consumers said that their location had a positive impact on the likelihood of clicking on a mobile advert, a study of 500 UK consumers has found. BlisMedia’s study has also found that 43 per cent of UK consumers have clicked on a mobile advert at some time.
Viacom Experiences Revenue Slide
Mass media company, Viacom, has released its quarterly results, showing a five per cent drop in quarterly revenue. However, Media Networks revenues grew 5 per cent, principally due to growth in affiliate fees and international advertising revenues.
‘Super-Users’ Are More Engaged Than TV-Only Viewers
Apparent ‘Super-Users’, viewers who watch on both TV and online, are more engaged than TV-only users, the Total View: Measuring the Changing Video Landscape, from the Coalition for Innovating Media Measurement and comScore has found.
OTT Closing in on Cable
Streaming service penetration is now on par with cable, a survey from Clearleap has discovered. The survey was conducted to learn more about which streaming services US consumers use, what their viewing habits are, and what they value most in an OTT offering.
65 Per Cent of U.S Will Give Tech for Christmas
Roughly 160 million people in the U.S will give technology this Christmas, new research from the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) has found. According to the ‘Annual CE Holiday Purchase Patterns Study’, 65 per cent of Americans will be purchasing tech for Christmas, and emerging technologies continue to drive growth in the tech industry.
UK To Have TV Heavy Christmas
UK consumers are predicted to have a TV-heavy Christmas, though much of that viewing will be accompanied by a few digital relations, a report from RadiumOne and reported by eMarketer has found.
Africa To Grow to 1 Billion Broadband Subscriptions
Africa is set to hit 1bn broadband subscriptions by 2020 according to the latest research from Ovum. The rapid growth of mobile broadband in Africa over the next few years is predicted to be driven by the increasing affordability of smartphones and other data devices and the ongoing rollout of 3G W-CDMA and 4G LTE networks on the continent.
13 Largest U.S Pay-TV Providers Lose 190,000 Subscribers
The thirteen largest pay-TV providers in the U.S, which covers roughly 95 per cent of the market, lost about 190,000 net video subscribers in Q3 of 2015, research from the Leichtman Research Group has found. The report also found that Satellite TV providers added 3,000 subscribers in 3Q 2015 (including gains from DISH’s Internet-delivered Sling TV).
Liberty Global Announces Acquisition of Cable & Wireless
A cash-and-stock transaction has taken place as John Malone’s Liberty Global acquires Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC). The purchase extends Malone’s cable reach further into Latin America.
14 Per Cent of Australians Use Netflix
Around 2.5 million people used Netflix to stream TV shows or movies in the six months to June 2015, a new report from ACMA has found. The ACMA surveyed 1,505 Australian adults in May and June 2015 and asked about their use of subscription online video services.
Connected TV Usage to Hit 200 Million
By 2019 U.S. home penetration of connected TV users will rise to 78.1 per cent, although the growth rate will be slower as it reaches higher U.S. penetration, a new study from eMarketer has found.
DAA Provides Cross-Device Guidelines to Industry
Initial guidelines from the Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) have been released to help companies apply the DAA’s Self-Regulatory Principles in the rapidly growing cross-device environment. The guidance makes it clear that the transparency and obligations in the existing Principles apply to cross-device platforms.
Quality of Experience Integral to Keeping OTT Subscribers
One in five viewers will abandon poor-streaming video experiences immediately, according to Conviva’s OTT: Beyond Entertainment Survey Report. The report found that, after a poor experience, one in five viewers will not return to that provider.
Netflix Tops OTT Subscription Services
Netflix has been placed at the head of the top ten subscription U.S over-the-top (OTT) video services based on number of subscribers, in new research from Parks Associates. Three of the ten services on the list were focused on sports content.
SVoD Homes to Reach 306 Million
The number of households with Video-on-Demand services is set to reach 306 million across 200 countries by 2020, according to predictions from Digital TV Research. The total is set to grow by 42 million in 2015 alone.
Smartphones Lead Growth in Portable Ad Viewing
67 per cent of smartphones were used to view ads on portable devices, FreeWheel’s Q3 Video Monetization Report has found. The report also found that European broadcasters monetized the majority of their dynamically served content across long-form on-demand, accounting for 87 per cent of total video ad views, compared to just 29 per cent in the U.S.
SpotX Launches tvOS
SpotX has launched an SDK for Apple’s new tvOS, enabling publishers to monetise their Apple TV apps with video ads. Among other things, the SDK will enable publishers to program when and how ads play in their Apple TV app.
Subtitles Get Video Completions on Facebook
Videos with subtitles drive video completions on Facebook, but trailers receive views, the latest study from Adaptly has shown. The study, from Adaptly and online publisher Refinery29, tested subtitles, pre-roll trailers previewing the video, and various combinations of these.
Viewbix Launches Analytics Platform
Video engagement platform, Viewbix, has announced the launch of its new analytics dashboard, Viewbix Insights, a real-time tool that marketers can use with the Viewbix Player.
Media Rating Council Issue Final Social Media Guidelines
The Media Rating Council (MRC) have issued their final guidelines to establish common practices for measuring Social Media Activity. The guidelines create standard approaches to measurement and outline definitions, to ensure a more standardized environment in which social media can be monetized.
MultiChoice Chooses Elemental for DStv Delivery
Elemental has announced that MultiChoice is using it for live-streaming and video-on-demand delivery of its DStv service. The service makes sports and entertainment content available on smart phones and tablets to more than 10 million subscribers in Sub-Saharan Africa.
This Week on VAN:
Bidding Will Have an Even Bigger Impact on Video than Display, read more on VAN
Matomy Acquires Video Platform Optimatic for $25 Million, read more on VAN
Smart TV Penetration in the UK Hits Thirty Percent with a 93 Percent Connection Rate, read more on VAN
Ad of the Week: Philips Breathless Choir, Ogilvy & Mather, London
When every breath is a battle, singing is the ultimate battle. Eighteen people with respiratory problems discover a sense of independence and freedom in this rebrand by Philips.
