Comcast Inserts VOD Ads in Early Stage of Customer Targeting
Comcast is in the early stages of a long-term strategy to make it possible for video on demand (VoD) shows to carry ads directly targeting cable subscribers. The cable operator is encoding ads with entire programs, but not yet for individual customers, Paul Woidke, vp- technology for Comcast’s Spotlight business, said in an interview. The company hopes eventually to adjust marketing based on time and perhaps customer demographics, he said. The firm said earlier this week that it’s working with advertisers it declined to identify, who are pleased so far (CD Aug 16 p3).
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Cable operators are starting to link ads to VoD content to boost revenue for the service, usually offered for free as part of digital packages. Cox said Mon. that it’s considering opt-in and “push” models to link demographic data to marketing materials. Comcast is using slots in shows to insert its own commercials and letting advertisers sponsor entire VoD shows, Woidke said. “The ability to do ad insertion into that content is one of the things that will keep [VoD] free,” he said. “It will still be an opportunity for advertisers that will allow that content to be monetized.”
Ad insertion may be crucial for Comcast, since it has no plans to keep customers from skipping ads, unlike Time Warner, which is working on such a program (CD July 27 p8). Comcast said it won’t interfere with subscribers’ VoD use - even if they can skip ads. “They're either going to watch content and commercials if those commercials are meaningful to them… or they're going to skip over them,” Woidke said. “Our goal is to provide a satisfying experience for our customers… and that goal is not achieved by telling them when they can and can’t fast forward.”
Advertisers clamoring for enhanced insertion capabilities will have to wait. No vendor Woidke knows has tools fully developed to do that, he said. “Many advertisers recognize that this is going to come, so they're experimenting today,” he said. “There is support for where we are, but there is an absolute drive on their part to get us into a more dynamic universe.”