Streaming Services Comprised 45% of Non-Linear Ad Views in 1H 2021, New FreeWheel Report Finds
August 25 2021 - 8:00AM
Business Wire
Additionally, fueled by buyers seeking
flexibility, programmatic also emerged as a main theme during this
year’s upfronts, as evidenced by its 84% YOY growth, and is
expected to remain a key trend moving forward.
Today, FreeWheel, A Comcast Company (Nasdaq: CMCSA), published
the latest installment of its U.S. Video Marketplace Report (VMR),
an industry benchmark publication that examines industry viewership
trends. This latest report, accessible here, takes a closer look at
“The Viewer Evolution and How The Premium Video Marketplace Has
Responded” in 1H 2021.
Throughout the first half of this year, new technologies and
political tensions – amid an evolving pandemic – transformed and
accelerated how people accessed, engaged with and responded to
media and advertising. As a result, several key consumer viewership
trends and behaviors emerged, which the report’s authors predict
will continue to play an influential role in shaping the industry
moving forward.
The report’s key findings include:
- Viewers showed that they are still streaming in the
first half of 2021. In particular, there has been a shift in how
people watch video with the growth of CTV viewership and the launch
of new streaming platforms offering more TV quality programming.
During this time frame, ad views continued to increase 50% year
over year, driven by the increase in streaming. In fact, streaming
services accounted for 45% of recorded ad views, greater than TV
Everywhere (TVE), Set-Top Box Video on Demand (STB VOD) and Virtual
MVPDs (vMVPDs) as a distribution platform.
- Connected TV (CTV) accounts for 60% of total ad views,
with Roku and Fire TV devices continuing to lead with 43% and 26%
of CTV views, respectively.
- As the world emerged from an unpredictable year, buyers went
into the upfronts seeking flexibility, with an increased focus on
programmatic transactions. According to a recent study, more
than half of CTV buyers planned to allocate more money to
programmatic in 2021 than they did in 2020. This trend was seen in
the first half of 2021, with programmatic transactions comprising
24% of premium video ad views, resulting in an 84% year-over-year
growth.
- Entertainment programming continues to lead the premium
TV video ecosystem, with 92% of ad views. As streaming services
continue to double down on content, two main approaches emerged:
those who diversify and those who specialize. Paramount+ and
Peacock, for instance, offer consumers diverse content ranging from
sports to comedies, dramas and movies, while others focus on
specific verticals. (Examples include Warner Media’s HBO Max and
CNN’s upcoming, subscription based, live programming news streaming
service, CNN+.)
- Behavioral targeting increased share due to advances in
audience targeting capabilities with 60% representing behavioral
segments and 40% demo.
“The first half of 2021 was an interesting and pivotal time in
terms of viewership trends and how the industry responded. One
example was the rise in programmatic transactions, as buyers sought
greater flexibility, in this year’s upfronts,” said Comcast
Advertising VP of Marketing James Rothwell. “As these new consumer
behaviors and advertising tactics become habitual, we’re expecting
many of these trends to continue fueling the pace and development
of new technologies, innovations and ways of reaching and engaging
viewers.”
The FreeWheel U.S. Video Marketplace Report highlights the
changing dynamics of how enterprise-class content owners and
distributors are monetizing premium digital video content.
To read the full report, click here.
About FreeWheel FreeWheel, A Comcast Company, empowers
all segments of The New TV Ecosystem. We are structured to provide
the full breadth of solutions the advertising industry needs to
achieve their goals. We provide the technology, data enablement,
and convergent marketplaces required to ensure buyers and sellers
can transact across all screens, across all data types, and all
sales channels, in order to ensure the ultimate goal – results for
marketers.
With offices in New York, San Francisco, Chicago, London, Paris,
Beijing, and across the globe, FreeWheel, A Comcast Company, stands
to advocate for the entire industry through the FreeWheel Council
for Premium Video. For more information, please visit
freewheel.com, and follow us on Twitter and LinkedIn.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20210825005098/en/
Media Elaine Wong 929-388-9098
elaine_wong@comcast.com
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