As marketers seek to reach consumers among a variety of media channels and electronic devices, Comcast Advertising is working to help them to harness data to improve their targeting.
“We’re really proud of the work we’ve done across Comcast Advertising more broadly at enabling more programmers and networks to be lit up by addressable enablement,” James Rooke, who recently was named president of Comcast Advertising, said in this Beet.tv interview with Sr. Editor Rob Williams.
In his new role, Rooke oversees brands including Effectv, FreeWheel and AudienceXpress. He previously was general manager of Effectv, the ad sales division of Comcast Cable. Rooke replaced Marcien Jenckes, who was promoted to lead a joint venture between Charter and Comcast and serve as managing director for Comcast Advertising, according to an announcement.
Rooke said the company will continue to provide advertisers with impression-based ways to reach consumers, while also being mindful of people’s privacy as the regulatory environment grows more complex.
He also sees a focus on how brand advertising and performance marketing at the lower part of the purchase funnel work together, and more interoperability among companies throughout the media ecosystem.
“As complexity and fragmentation increases, people are going to be successful together,” Rooke said. “There’s no choice but to work in a more interoperable way.”
Rooke joined Effectv in January 2020, where he initiated its transformation to a multi-screen, audience delivery company to help advertisers reach target customers and drive measurable results. He helped to bring more data to TV advertising strategies, as well as driving the growth of addressable advertising and programmatic capabilities.
Before leading Effectv, Rooke oversaw FreeWheel’s global publisher business unit responsible for providing TV programmers and distributors with advertising technology to manage the monetization of their video content. He also helped to launch FreeWheel’s first video marketplace, led its consulting business and served as chief revenue officer.
Rooke’s background also includes a stint in the media business at Time Warner Cable as vice president of strategy and execution. He was also a principal in the media and entertainment practice at Capgemini. He started his career as an associate consultant at Ernst & Young.
