GroupM, the media investment arm of WPP, has teamed up with media companies from all over the world to collaborate on developing new standards for measuring CTV and the viewability of streaming video. The initiative is the product of a joint study conducted with the TV ad measurement company iSpot. The study quantifies inflated CTV ad delivery counts and reveals that 8-10 per cent of streaming impressions play when the TV is turned off, primarily through ancillary devices.
Disney, Fox/Tubi, LG Ads Solutions, NBCUniversal, Paramount, VIZIO, and Warner Bros. Discovery have all committed to working with advertising agencies, advertisers, and standards-setting bodies to develop a streamlined measurement framework and set of best practices to ensure that advertisements are only counted when they are delivered to screens that have people in front of them.
The previous year, GroupM prioritised expanding the use of “Are You Still Watching” end cards as a means of contributing to resolving the issue of potentially inflated audience counts. The initiative has received support from both publishers and platforms; however, it does not entirely address the problem.
“As a result of the meteoric rise of streaming, there is a significant increase in the number of opportunities to deliver more relevant advertising experiences across various channels.” Kirk McDonald, Chief Executive Officer of GroupM North America, stated, “It is our job to close the gaps with any technological advancements so that all avenues of ad delivery are verified,” and “It is our responsibility to do so.” “As responsible stewards of the media spend entrusted to us by our clients, this verification brings to light both the challenge and the opportunity facing our industry.”
According to Sean Muller, the Chief Executive Officer of iSpot.tv, “This approach to verifying CTV allows us to quantify a complex problem comprehensively.” “What is more important is that it provides insights and a pathway for solving an important issue that the industry is facing,”
According to Adam Gerber, Executive Director of Investment Strategy for GroupM U.S., “one of the most important findings was that rates of continuous play vary dramatically depending on the TV set model, streaming device, and publisher app used.” This is just one of the many measurement challenges the industry is currently facing due to the increasing fragmentation of consumption across devices, time, and locations. These facts highlight how important it is for the industry to work together on a unified initiative to establish standards and measurement solutions. It is a component of a more significant effort to ensure that measurement accurately reflects the number of people who are exposed to an advertisement.
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