A Feather In Netflix’s CAPI
Outcomes are No. 1 on Netflix.
On Wednesday, Netflix became the latest streamer to unveil a conversion API to help buyers track whether their ads are actually driving actions.
CAPIs may now be a given on digital and social platforms such as Meta and LinkedIn, but they’re newer to streaming environments. The rising pressure to justify TV ad buys explains why streaming companies like Roku are rolling out their own CAPIs to assure marketers that streaming ads perform – and are worth the long-term investment.
As for Netflix, it wants the industry to know “we’ve been listening closely to what advertisers are asking for,” according to its blog post. Both targeting and measurement have been at the top of marketer wish lists since Netflix first launched ads in 2022.
Speaking of, Netflix also announced that, starting in Q2, it will make expanded targeting capabilities available for US media buyers through both Yahoo DSP and Amazon DSP.
These integrations give Netflix buyers the ability to target viewers based on information such as purchase behavior and life stage. Netflix says it plans to extend these capabilities to other markets where its ads plan is available by later this year.
Call it a well-timed humble brag heading into upfronts season.
Redemption Arc?
As news traffic has declined – partly due to the rise of AI-powered search – local outlets like The Philadelphia Inquirer have been shrinking, WSJ reports.
Now, AI might help them grow again.
The Inquirer began using AI tools to scan the topics at local meetings, flagging newsworthy subjects like data-center proposals. It then used that data to expand its footprint, launching four newsletters in new locations last year (totaling 50,000 free subscribers) with eight more coming this year.
The initiative is partially funded by a partnership with OpenAI and Microsoft.
The Andover Advertiser and Hampshire Chronicle, meanwhile, use AI to draft full articles.
Using AI to cut down on grunt work is “a game changer in terms of building out a sustainable local news business,” says Henry Faure Walker, CEO of USA Today’s UK-based Newsquest Media Group. Last year, its digital subscriptions grew 32%, and it now plans to increase its staff.
There are hiccups, though, of course. Last year, the Inquirer shared a syndicated summer reading list that was found to be AI-generated and featured nonexistent books.
A chatbot’s tendency to hallucinate is just one reason why “reporters and editors say AI isn’t ready to fully replace humans in local newsrooms,” writes the WSJ.
Which begs the question: When will it be ready – and, when that time comes, who will be left to save?
Tell It To The CFO
CFOs are getting more involved in marketing decisions. That’s one reason some say ad tech is in its “Outcomes Era.”
More and more, agencies find themselves pitching campaign plans directly to the finance chief, Digiday reports.
And even in cases where the CFO isn’t involved in planning, agencies are “helping CMOs prepare for board conversations where finance is in the room and the questions are sharper,” says Sarah VanHeirseele, chief growth officer at independent agency Blue Chip.
Whereas CFOs were once upon a time mostly satisfied with basic campaign metrics, they are now tackling more complex subjects like contribution margin, LTV-to-CAC ratio and payback periods, says Liz Yoselowitz, global CMO at Brainlabs, another indie agency. They want proof that ad spend is driving revenue growth, rather than just being correlated to it.
Why is this happening? Well, CFOs are increasingly skeptical of ad tech’s vanity metrics, which flatter rather than demonstrate real ROI, says VaynerMedia CEO Gary Vaynerchuk.
Plus, brands still see marketing as an expense to be minimized, rather than as an asset or growth engine.
“That’s why many organizations default to performance spend,” says VanHeirseele. “It’s easier to match the expense to a result in the same budget cycle.”
But Wait! There’s More!
Ad agencies are embracing “vibe coding” to develop GEO products for clients. [Adweek]
Meanwhile, more companies are vibe coding their own CRMs amid rising cloud infrastructure costs. [WSJ]
A new agreement between Google and Epic could signal the end of the 30% app store fee. [Ars Technica]
In AI and MFA news: DoubleVerify uncovered a network of more than 200 AI slop websites that monetize with ads and shared the exact prompts used by the scammers. [Axios]
By the way, human moderators doing “AI annotation” in Kenya are seeing all the intimate content you capture with your Meta glasses. [Engadget]
Another day, another lawsuit from a family alleging that an AI chatbot (this time, Google Gemini) drove their loved one to suicide. [Bloomberg Law]
Polymarket has finally decided to draw the line at betting on nuclear detonation. [404 Media]
You’re Hired!
Havas Media Network’s North America arm appoints Sharona Sankar-King as chief data and product officer. [release]
Adform promotes Dovilė Buinickaitė to SVP of people and culture. [ExchangeWire]
Here’s today’s AdExchanger.com news round-up… Want it by email? Sign up here.
