Criticisms over playing TV commercials online never stop, it’s one of the key issues for broadband video advertising. Yet TV is central to broadband video advertising, from the abundance of TV content being streamed online, which is a major source of broadband video advertising revenue, to the consumer desire to play broadband content on their televisions, which they’ll be able to do with Apple’s new iTV box.
This week’s iSPOT features a story about MediaZone’s Social TV, which will stream TV content from around the world online and be supported by linear TV ads, because “that’s the inventory that’s available,” according to MediaZone’s vice president of business development Mariana Danilovic. This week’s iChat features an illuminating conversation with Tracey Scheppach, Starcom’s vp/video innovation director, who buys broadband video ads for clients. When asked about her interest in new ad formats, she mentioned one, but then indicated linear TV ads are acceptable because “it goes back to the converged world, it’s just video.”
Broadband video ads are “just video,” like TV ads, but the desire to make them unique to the medium is a strong one. Broadband video advertising strives to separate itself from TV as it depends on TV for revenue and workable formats. It’s an ongoing dilemma with major developments ahead.
Ken Liebeskind, iSPOT Senior Editor, kliebeskind@shootonline.com, 203-227-1699, ext.17 www.shootonline.com/go/ispot