The latest FreeWheel Council for Premium Video position paper contains many insights and conclusions, one of which in particular stands out to James Rooke. When it comes to delivering optimal ad experiences across different screens, there is shared accountability and responsibility.
“There was a clear understanding, based on the conversations that we had with brands and agencies, that solving for best-in-class ad experience isn’t the issue of the publisher alone,” says the GM, Publisher Platform, FreeWheel. “There is shared accountability on both sides.”
More than half (52%) of 250 agency and brand leaders surveyed by the FreeWheel Council for Premium Video said that improving the video ad experience for consumers is the biggest challenge for the industry.
“One of the interesting findings was that the number one answer for ad experience issues actually came back as creative diversity, and that is something that the buy side has accountability for,” Rooke says in this interview with Beet.TV.
Other findings highlighted the need to ensure the right creative assets are made available for the right screens and that ad tags aren’t so heavy as to cause latency issues. “But there was a very balanced point of view that says that at the end of the day, we have to put the consumer at the center,” Rooke says.
He believes that if everyone does their part, everyone will win. Brands know that they’re getting the best return for their money if consumers are watching content in brand-safe and engaging environments, while MVPD’s and other premium video providers can continue to grow their share of ad dollars.
“That fuels the production of best-in-class content that we get to all enjoy, and that’s good for consumers. So I think there’s a nice virtuous cycle there,” Rooke says.
When it comes to fragmentation, FreeWheel has a bird’s-eye view of the complications, as it executes dynamic ad insertion to more than 200 different endpoints.
“Managing that ad experience is not just a technical issue but it is the combination of business policy, operational execution and technical execution. And those three things have to come together across all the different parties,” Rooke observes.
This segment is part of a series leading up to the 2017 TV Upfront. It is presented by FreeWheel. To find more videos from the series, please visit this page.
