NATPE has been around for over 40 years. It would be no surprise if they, like many of the people who have been in “the industry” for that long hadn’t changed much during the course of their existence. I'm happy to report that's not the case. The LATVFest, held in Los Angeles on the 8th and 9th of July, was my first NATPE experience. I was really enthused by what I saw. There was a great mix of fresh new talent and established industry people. A perfect storm for innovation to happen. From what I saw in the panels, the shift is happening. Industry professionals who have been anchored in traditional media are starting to recognize the Internet as a via platform for content creation, distribution and consumption.
The bulk of the discussions I took part in and witnessed were focused on how the transition from traditional broadcast media to “networked” media can happen smoothly and profitably. I’ve only been here in LA for only two years. In the time that I’ve been here I’ve seen the slow but certain evolution of the entertainment industry as it moves toward embracing the power of the social web.
Unanswered questions and the need for standards
There are still many unanswered questions. In the panel on “The Effect of Democratization of Media on Content and the Audience,” Brady Brim-Deforest of Tubefilter brought forth the needs for standards for tracking and measuring digital content. As Brady points out, “There’s no ratings system for independent content that buyers can buy against.” What counts as a view? How do you measure engagement? These stats are calculated differently from channel to channel. Check out this Tube Mogul study.
Lori Schwartz from IPGLAB posited that online doesn’t scale. Interpublic Group shop Initiative just demonstrated their understanding of the importance of social content with the Carl’s Junior YouTube campaign. French Maids TV creator Tim Street shouted from the audience asking “isn’t 5 - 10m views scale?” referencing online shows like FRED that get millions of views. While panelist Kevin Yen of YouTube argued that the Internet scales and doesn’t scale as much as any other platform. And I tend to agree. The internet is infinitely more granular than traditional broadcast channels. But online, as with off, you can either buy across a number of small properties and go for a number of smaller and highly targeted audience segments or cast a wide net in order to achieve reach and expand into potential new audiences. This brings aggregators to the forefront. It’s difficult for large agencies that are used to filling out one IO (insertion order) that buys millions of eyeballs to all of a sudden have to do research and negotiate a series of smaller deals to get the equivalent. Things might move forward more quickly if we can aggregate eyeballs in a way that makes them easier to buy against. Connecting with people online is a different game than broadcast too. Engagement is the name of the game there. That requires a new approach to creative.
Getting content produced and distributed
While in the Digital Mentor Round Robin attendees had the chance to “speed date” industry executives, ask them questions and introduce themselves. Just about everyone wanted to know how they could get their content produced and distributed and monetize it. Daniel Weidenfeld of Generate had some interesting views on how independents can get content produced. Weidenfeld suggested going to a brand, large or small, and pitching a branded entertainment project which includes an online/offline media-buy via YouTube, Google and Google TV in the price so that eyeballs can be bought in bulk. He suggests starting the conversation with media since that’s the language advertisers are used to speaking.
The convergence of tech and entertainment
It’s exciting to see the fusion between tech and entertainment that’s taking place in Los Angeles right now. The gathering places of the social web are content and L.A. is the content capital of the world. It’s only a matter of time before some truly ground-breaking innovation happens here as we witness the cross-pollination between tech and entertainment.
Thanks for a great writeup
Jackie, I think you hit the nail on the head with "Things might move forward more quickly if we can aggregate eyeballs in a way that makes them easier to buy against."
There is a serious mismatch in operational and economic scale today between the digital media buying agencies and the online ad spend opportunities. This is what drives the creation and growth of both content aggregators and ad network players. In video, you see it with companies like Break.com which is building both a branded destination with a clear psychographic profile and an extended ad-serving network for video content.
One obstacle that I think needs to be addressed further is whether online video is suited to different ad approaches than the traditional 30 second commercial (while acknowledging that the format has transitioned reasonably well to Hulu and the network portals). If it's about sponsorship and branding and creating content that's "branded," then there is a need to sort out the roles of the content creators and the creative ad agencies. As well as a better and more accessible RFP process.
Thanks for summarizing your time at the conference. Sounds like it was a good event.
Thanks Mark
I do think there are other forms of creative or pieces of technology that could be added to the creative to optimize the experience for online audiences. BT and RT make it possible to serve ads that are more relevant to the user. I like it when I see people work a bit of engagement into standard ad formats.
I saw this post on Jeremiah Owyang's blog that detailed a recent ad campaign by Crispin Porter + Bogusky (of course it was them! i love their work!) for Volkswagon that incorporated information from your Twitter feed or Facebook profile into the advertisement itself.
Of course, engagement for engagement's sake just doesn't make sense either and sometimes it's not called for, but if you have the opportunity to engage vs. simply broadcast I say go for it.
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