Author: Greg Jarboe / Source: Tubular Insights This year, I attended about 10 out of the 34 presentations at this year’s Digital Content
This year, I attended about 10 out of the 34 presentations at this year’s Digital Content NewFronts. (Actually, I attended 11 – because The New York Times held two events, but it only listed one of them on the official IAB agenda.) By combining what I saw and heard with a quick review of the 629 articles about the 2017 Digital Content NewFronts, I believe that I’m in a fairly solid position to select the top 10 takeaways from the 10-day marketplace.
Now, what follows isn’t “all the news that’s fit to print.” But, hopefully this article does contain strategic insights, critical data, and trends in the digital video marketing business. That’s always been my objective. So, without further ado, here are my top ten takeaways from actually attending about a third of the #NewFronts2017 events:
NewFronts 2017: Top 10 Takeaways
#1 More new digital video content than you can shake a stick at. Most presenters used the 2017 Digital Content NewFronts to showcase new star-studded shows for audiences around the globe. For example, Time Inc. unveiled a baker’s dozen new initiatives. Group Nine also introduced a baker’s dozen new programs. And YouTube announced seven new ad-supported shows: “Ellen’s Show Me More Show” starring Ellen DeGeneres, “Good Mythical Morning” starring Rhett and Link, “What the Fit?” starring Kevin Hart, “I Am” starring Demi Lovato, “Best.Cover.Ever.” starring Ludacris, “The Super Slow Show” starring The Slow Mo Guys, and “Katy Perry Live Special” starring Katy Perry. So, brands and media buyers can select from more new digital video content than you can shake a stick at.
#2 Johnson & Johnson declares victory and is advertising on YouTube again. Back in March, I wrote a memo to Johnson & Johnson and other big brands that were boycotting YouTube. After Philipp Schindler, Google’s Chief Business Officer, apologized and announced that Google was conducting “an extensive review of our advertising policies and tools,” I suggested that these big brands adopt the “Aiken formula” for ending the Vietnam War: “Declare victory and bring the troops home.” Well, during its Brandcast event, YouTube announced that Johnson & Johnson Consumer Brands will be the exclusive sponsor of “Best.Cover.Ever.” The big brand is also making a major investment in YouTube creators through Google Preferred. So, it looks like Johnson & Johnson has declared victory and is advertising on YouTube again.
#3 The reports of Twitter’s death are greatly exaggerated. Twitter unveiled a dozen new premium live streaming video content deals across news, sports, and entertainment at its first-ever Digital Content NewFronts presentation. I covered the joint announcement with Bloomberg Media, but deals were also announced with BuzzFeed News, the WNBA, MLBAM, the PGA TOUR, Live Nation, and half a dozen others. Twitter COO Anthony Noto said, “Last quarter, we streamed over 800 hours of live premium content from leading brands across sports, esports, news, and entertainment.” The new collaborations will bring hundreds of hours of new exclusive live original programming, live games and events, live syndications, extensions of existing live deals, and new always-on live streaming premium content to the platform. So, the reports of Twitter’s death are greatly exaggerated.
#4 Who are those guys? I mentioned that Group Nine Media introduced a baker’s dozen new programs. Who are those guys? Well, it is a family of digital media brands (NowThis, The Dodo, Seeker, and Thrillist) built for the mobile, social, and video-first world. Their videos got 3.3 billion (with a “b”) views in April 2017. That puts the media and entertainment property that many video marketers have never heard of ahead of Comcast, which ranked #9 with just under 3 billion views. And if you rank the top media and entertainment properties by…
COMMENTS