Spotify has launched its first global business-to-business ad campaign, the goal of which is to boost advertising revenue by attracting more small and medium-sized businesses. To that end, Spotify Advertising is the new name of the sector formerly known as Spotify for Brands. Advertising contributed 12 percent of Q2 revenue for Spotify, up from 7 percent the prior year. The subscription music service is also seeking more podcast inventory as it recasts itself as an “audio” streamer. Research firm eMarketer predicts Spotify will have 28.2 million monthly podcast listeners by year’s end, overtaking Apple’s iTunes, at 28 million. Continue reading Spotify Campaigns to Reach New Advertisers, Add Podcasts

YouTube, YouTube TV and Google TV inked new TV data agreements with Comscore and Parrot Analytics. Comscore said its cross-platform service Comscore Campaign Ratings will incorporate YouTube and YouTube TV measurement to provide data on those platforms across desktop, mobile and connected TV, to help advertisers and agencies “better understand co-viewing for YouTube and YouTube TV across OTT/CTV.” YouTube and Google TV also added Parrot Analytics’ global audience demand data and entertainment consulting services. Continue reading YouTube TV, Google TV Ink Data Deals with Comscore, Parrot

Nielsen Holdings will increase spending to improve how it measures TV audiences, especially its new Nielsen ONE product, said chief financial officer Linda Zukauckas. The news follows Nielsen’s $2.4 billion sale of Global Connect (since renamed NielsenIQ), which measures retail shopping for packaged goods companies, to Advent International Corporation. Nielsen ONE combines streaming and live TV ratings and is due to unveil next year. Nielsen hopes it will be a U.S. ratings standard by 2024 and, soon, a global standard. Continue reading Nielsen to Invest More in Streaming, Live TV Ratings Product

Advertising on Connected TV (CTV), otherwise known as Over-the-Top (OTT), is a hot topic for advertisers who want to get their messages on any device, including TVs that can be connected to the Internet. According to eMarketer, upwards of 40 percent of the world’s population are “digital video viewers.” But advertising on CTV has enough pitfalls to discourage marketers from embracing it. During a CES 2021 session, DoubleVerify chief executive Mark Zagorski and chief product officer Jack Smith enumerated the challenges and proposed solutions. Continue reading CES: Advertisers Need Better Measurement to Embrace OTT

During CES 2020, Spotify revealed plans to leverage its massive amount of user data in order to introduce targeted advertising in its exclusive podcast content. With its proprietary Streaming Ad Insertion (SAI) tech, Spotify will analyze data based on user location, type of device, gender, age and more to insert advertisements in real time (Spotify already automates dynamic ad insertion for its music streaming). The company could eventually become a major podcast ad network if it ends up placing ads in other networks’ content as well. Continue reading Spotify Plans to Run Targeted Ads in its Exclusive Podcasts

Following pressure from activist investor Elliott Management, Nielsen Holdings announced plans to split the media research firm into two independent publicly traded companies. Nielsen revealed it would create two separate companies by spinning off its Global Connect business. In a deal expected to close in 9-12 months, the two companies will be named Global Connect and Global Media. “Both the Global Media and Global Connect businesses are independently essential to the industries they serve, but each business has unique dynamics,” explained CEO David Kenny, who will stay on as chief exec of the Global Media business.  Continue reading Nielsen Will Split into Two Firms Following Activist Pressure

Acquired by Spotify in 2017, cloud-based audio recording studio Soundtrap just expanded its free tier for podcasters, now offering access to an unlimited number of projects and 2,210 loops. All creators using Soundtrap will now have unlimited free storage for podcasts and songs. Founded in 2012, the Swedish-based company has offered four subscription tiers, ranging from $10 to $17 per month, all supporting an unlimited number of projects, 550 instruments and 4,100 loops. Soundtrap’s free tier previously limited users to five projects and 900 loops. The number of available instruments will remain the same. Continue reading Spotify’s Soundtrap Expands its Free Toolset for Podcasters

Pandora plans to test new interactive advertising technology that would allow listeners to engage directly with its “voice ads” by speaking aloud. Pandora listeners could request additional information about a product or service being promoted, for example, or request skipping the ad altogether. The beta test, powered by ad-tech firm Instreamatic, is expected to launch later this year. Instreamatic provides an interactive ad platform built on its Voice AI Core to help brands and marketers “manage, measure and monetize voice-enabled audio advertising.” Continue reading Pandora Believes Listeners Will Interact with Its Voice Ads

Nielsen’s Social Content Ratings service — which measures the impact of television programming across social platforms Facebook, Instagram and Twitter — has been updated to include Owned Content Performance for helping television networks better understand social impact and optimize social strategies. During August, Nielsen examined more than 142,000 TV-related posts and tweets from accounts owned by or affiliated with networks, programs and talent handles, and discovered that images and video outperformed text in terms of engagement. Continue reading Nielsen Updates its Social Ratings to Measure Owned Content

Nielsen has begun collecting Netflix viewership data via audio recognition software in 44,000 U.S. households, part of its planned initiative to measure TV audiences of subscription video on-demand services. So far, A&E Networks, Disney ABC Television Group, Lionsgate, NBCUniversal and Warner Bros. have subscribed to the service. Nielsen clients can opt to release the data publicly. By adding SVOD measurements, Nielsen continues efforts to capture viewing behaviors that have changed with the emergence of mobile and streaming video.  Continue reading Nielsen Begins to Measure Audience Data of SVOD Services

Nielsen will expand its Digital Content Ratings to credit video distributed via Facebook, Hulu and YouTube. According to Jessica Hogue, SVP of product leadership at Nielsen, “These are three of the biggest and most meaningful platforms for media companies and advertisers.” The move “will allow TV network and digital publishers to capture incremental viewing of video on the three digital outlets,” reports Variety, and extends the measurement firm’s push into new media viewership. “Nielsen’s announcement comes as more digital companies are placing new emphasis and added resources on creating video content, rather than pieces of simple text.” Continue reading Nielsen Includes Facebook, Hulu, YouTube in Digital Ratings

Television measurement leader Nielsen is adding Hulu and YouTube TV to its ratings, the company’s next step toward including more streaming data. So far, Nielsen’s coverage of streaming viewership has largely involved data from TV networks distributing content via digital platforms, such as CBS shows made available on CBS All Access. “This is the first time the biggest digital-first, TV streaming companies have come into the fold in terms of being included in TV ratings,” said Nielsen president of product leadership Megan Clarken. Continue reading Hulu and YouTube TV Data Now Included in Nielsen Ratings

“Today” show host Al Roker’s newly-formed Roker Media is teaming up with Brave Ventures to launch the “Live Fronts.” The NewFronts-style event, which will provide live-video companies with the chance to pitch to advertisers, will be held in New York City in October. Attendance will be open to “anyone in the business of live-streaming,” said Brave Ventures co-founder Jesse Rednis. Advertising Age describes the event “as a way to showcase the opportunities for marketers and content producers on platforms like Facebook Live, Periscope and YouNow, while at the same time hanging the open-for-business sign.” Continue reading Live Streaming Will Get its Own Upfronts in NYC This October

Up until now, the methodology to find out what TV viewers like — based largely on written surveys and machines with dials to indicate their degree of enjoyment — has been fairly primitive and, most likely, not very reliable. Comcast’s NBCUniversal and Viacom are now both trying to dig deeper using biometrics, including eye movements, facial reactions, skin sensors, heart monitors, and EEGs to monitor brain waves. Viewing measurement company Nielsen even bought a neuroscience firm, Innerscope Resesarch, to add these skillsets to its lab. Continue reading Networks Turn to Neuroscience, Biometrics to Study TV Viewing

According to a new report from eMarketer, photo and video sharing app Instagram, which does not have a desktop ad product, is projected to bring in $595 million in mobile advertising revenue worldwide this year. The report predicts the Facebook-owned network will reach $1.48 billion in mobile ad revenue in 2016 and $2.81 billion the following year. By 2017, eMarketer expects Instagram will account for more than 10 percent of Facebook’s total ad revenue and, in the U.S., Instagram will have higher net mobile display ad revenues than Google and Twitter.

Continue reading Instagram to Generate $595M in Mobile Ad Revenue in 2015