“On TV and Video” is a column exploring opportunities and challenges in advanced TV and video.
Today’s column is written by Sarah Lewis, Global Director of CTV at ShowHeroes Group.
The race is on for alternative digital TV and video currencies, with the newly unveiled Joint Industry Committee (JIC) joining the fray. The collaboration, fronted by Fox, NBCUniversal, Paramount, TelevisaUnivision, and Warner Bros. Discovery—along with data partners the VAB and OpenAP—aims to create a measurement model that is “transparent, independent, inclusive, and accurately reflects the way all people consume premium video content today”.
In a media landscape that’s highly fragmented and rapidly changing, the creation of the JIC comes as welcome recognition of the fact that a more robust, flexible and universal metrics solution is long overdue. In fact, the JIC has the potential to be a heavyweight alternative to Nielsen, which remains suspended by the Media Rating Council for reporting inaccuracies. It could also rival other proprietary products that are emerging across the CTV ecosystem—such as Disney’s VideoAmp integration.
Yet, for any new tools or currencies to really have teeth in online video advertising and win inventory from hugely dominant Big Tech players, they need to reach beyond the realms of legacy media. To create the caliber of inclusive cross-platform measurement that it aspires to – the JIC must broaden its horizons.
Moving pieces in a multi-market era
The future of TV and video measurement cannot be decided by linear broadcasters alone. The success of the JIC will depend on the committee’s pledge to add “other premium video programmers” to its proposal in coming months. Its first port of call lies in courting the power players of digital TV, as well as the leading players in the video ad-tech space.
The likes of Fox, Paramount and co. have to remember that the digital video ecosystem as it exists now is massively disjointed. Broadcasters are just one piece of the pie. They cannot operate as a closed shop with a tunnel-vision approach to metrics that conflicts with other digital streamers. Without the cooperation of those in the wider video industry informing the development of standards, any solution from the JIC will be less viable and relevant in an ultra-competitive sphere.
For an audience measurement dynamic that is universally applicable, they must also be familiar with emerging concepts such as the attention economy. Meanwhile, the JIC must ensure that its model integrates internationally, for global scalability, accreditation and investment.
Taking on the tech giants
According to Omdia, TikTok will command 37% of all online video advertising by 2027, edging out both linear and CTV contenders. If Warner Bros. Discovery, Paramount, or even Netflix, are to avoid hemorrhaging revenue in a $331B market, a healthier advertising climate is key.
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If the JIC can work together with a range of voices from across the video ecosystem, it may well find the golden egg it seeks: a competitive, inclusive and innovative measurement currency. Such a framework would build trust from advertisers and could be rolled out in markets around the world, generating the strength needed to upset Big Tech’s sway.
A project of this magnitude will take time to develop—possibly far beyond the JIC’s current deadline of the 2024 upfronts—as the organization engages multiple video stakeholders. But it’s this openness that will help re-balance the scales in digital video advertising, giving the jumpstart that the JIC’s “new multi-currency future” so inherently needs.
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