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EMX by Big Village, Viamedia & CTV Media Launch Successful Programmatic Ads Test for Live Cable TV

February 20, 2020

 

Innovative Step Taken in Bridging Linear TV with the Digital Programmatic Advertising Landscape

NEW YORK – Dec. 18, 2019 – EMX by Big Village, the leading premium SSP and end-to-end programmatic technology group focused on the planning, buying, and measurement of CTV and omnichannel media, and Viamedia, a leading cross-platform local video advertising company, announced today the successful trial of QTTTM, Viamedia’s cloud-based patent-pending advanced television advertising product which is the first to use digital standards to programmatically request and receive ads from a digital ad exchange to enable live linear cable television ad insertion in real-time utilizing existing cable TV ad insertion infrastructure.

During the first market trials of QTTTM in WOW!’s Columbus, Ohio system, EMX’s ad exchange responded to QTTTM ad requests to fill 30-second commercials allocated to WOW!’s cable TV network local ad breaks. Advertisers involved in market trials were from Big Village, EMX’s parent company, as well as CTV Media, a local ad agency based in Columbus. The goal is to increase linear ad rates and cable TV revenues, all with the participation of digital programmatic players.

In an industry first for programmatic TV, over the last eight weeks, Viamedia’s QTTTM has utilized customizable business rules to identify thousands of data-driven targeted ad breaks in cable television and made real-time IAB standard VAST standard ad requests to EMX’s ad exchange. EMX’s ad exchange processed and fulfilled the QTT™ VAST requests with VAST responses that QTT™ was able to automatically read and process, allowing for the insertion of brand-safe commercials originating from a pre-existing industry-standard programmatic platform, that were then inserted into a linear cable television program in real-time without a pre-set schedule and without the need for any upgraded set boxes. Using the latest in programmatic real-time bidding (RTB) technology, the solution ensured a seamless user experience for the viewer while delivering the highest performing audience segment to the advertiser.

Michael Zacharski, CEO, EMX by Big Village said, “Our exchange was built with the future of TV in mind. We have been investing in both our supply assets and demand solutions to help clients capture the right audience at the right time, across any device. Through our partnership with Viamedia, we are excited to lend the capabilities of our sophisticated technology platform in bridging linear TV and programmatic digital media. We are now working to further scale access to linear TV for our managed clients and then across our demand platforms and to programmatic buyers in 2020.”

Mark Lieberman, CEO, Viamedia said, “We believe that QTTTM can raise the boat for the entire advertising industry, benefitting the digital demand side in accessing premium linear cable TV inventory while using current workflows and ad insertion technology. By partnering with EMX, CTV Media and WOW!, the initial QTTTM market trial represents an important step in marrying the fast-growing $17 billion digital video advertising marketplace with the attractive $6 billion cable TV marketplace.”

By matching audience characteristics to targeting parameters, the live market trial demonstrated that targeted linear cable television is now ready and available with the same ease of use expected by programmatic traders and television advertisers, alike. “The ease of integrating local television for our clients through our programmatic platforms is an indicator of the convergence to come, it’s an exciting time for all of us in the industry,” said Kyle Kreuger, SVP, media planning, Big Village.

“CTV Media has prided itself on being at the forefront in providing advanced advertising TV solutions for our national and regional clients,” said Kathy Dixon, president of CTV Media. “Viamedia’s QTTTM now makes it possible for us to include linear cable TV in that solution set programmatically.”

“WOW! has always sought to ensure a great subscriber viewing experience while growing TV advertising revenue,” said Misty Jensen, vice president, advertising sales, for WOW! Internet, Cable & Phone. “We are excited to have successfully participated in Viamedia’s QTTTM market trial and look forward to rolling out QTTTM in other markets.”

Working with a myriad of demand-side partners, Viamedia intends to rollout QTTTM throughout its footprint across the country in Q1 of 2020 and then make QTT available to non-Viamedia MVPDs in the second half of 2020.

About EMX by Big Village 

EMX is a leading end-to-end programmatic technology group focused on the planning, buying, and measurement of CTV and omnichannel media. As a premium global direct to publisher supply side platform (SSP), data platform, media trading desk, and local marketing cloud, EMX is the fully owned technology that powers Big Village’s programmatic media business. Big Village is a global advertising, technology, and data company. Find out more at https://big-village.com/emx/  

About Big Village

Big Village is a global advertising, technology, and data company. Driven by our diverse group of experts, we provide a new way of working by bringing programmatic solutions, media, insights, and creative all under one roof. Big Village is headquartered in New York and has 12 offices across North America, Europe, and Australia. Find out more at big-village.com   

About ViaMedia

Headquartered in New York City, Viamedia provides a comprehensive audience and impression-based local video and digital advertising platform. As part of the platform, Viamedia has exclusive cable TV ad inventory from more than 60 Cable TV Distributors in 34 states across 72 DMAs, offering advertising on cable TV networks to more than 6,000 local, regional and national advertisers. Viamedia also offers those advertisers a complementary suite of impression-based digital products including Viamedia’s proprietary QTTTM, OTT, mobile, display, email, search, and social, in those DMAs and beyond. Viamedia’s success is built on its proprietary software, people and processes.

For more information, please visit www.viamediatv.com.

About WOW! Internet, Cable & Phone

WOW! is one of the nation’s leading broadband providers, with a service area that passes over three million residential, business and wholesale consumers. WOW! provides service in 19 markets, primarily in the Midwest and Southeast, including Illinois, Michigan, Indiana, Ohio, Maryland, Alabama, Tennessee, South Carolina, Florida and Georgia. With an expansive portfolio of advanced services including high-speed Internet services, cable TV, phone, business data, voice, and cloud services, the company is dedicated to providing outstanding service at affordable prices. WOW! also serves as a leader in exceptional human resources practices while providing high standards for employee relations and business practices, recognized by the National Association for Business Resources’ Best & Brightest Company to Work For award for five years since 2014. Visit wowway.com for more information.

About CTV

CTV Media is a pioneer in data-driven media solutions. CTV Media’s foundation was built on local cable and has evolved into guiding our agency partners across all video platforms and technologies with no bias. CTV Media provides analytics and optimization that result in precise targeting and improved ROI. CTV Media simplifies execution while providing bottom-line results. To learn more about CTV Media, please visit CTVMedia.com.

Originally posted as a press release here.