Redefining Viewer Engagement Through Data-Driven Entertainment Personalization

Redefining viewer engagement demands ongoing evolution. Streaming entertainment should feel effortless. Discovery should be smart. Subscriptions should be simple. And operators should have the tools to act with precision and agility.

How Subscriptions Increase Revenue and Improve Customer Engagement

The benefits of subscriptions as a business model for marketers include a recurring revenue stream, access over ownership, continuous value delivery, and a customer-centric focus. The migration to subscription-based business models is being driven by advancements in technology, customer needs, economic outlook, and the business advantages of this business model.

Going Beyond the Edge: Why Post-Device Testing and Monitoring Is the Most Essential Step for True Streaming Quality

Traditional quality assurance testing takes place in controlled environments that don't reflect real-world complexity, and it ends before content reaches the viewer, leaving streaming providers vulnerable to issues that cause viewers to defect. This article explores why testing after the edge: that is, at the device level, where viewers actually experience the service, is essential for delivering truly stellar streaming quality and reliability.

The Next 20 Years: What Role Will Large Social Platforms like YouTube Play in the Future of the Creator Economy?

For the past two decades, YouTube, and large social media platforms like it have been at the center of the creator economy. But many creators have learned that building a business on top of a platform you don't own or control comes with downsides. As a result, after two decades of platform dependency, several large creators have started experimenting with more direct-to-consumer (D2C/DTC) outlets for their content.

Monetization. Agility, and Tech Readiness Define Streaming Success

In the highly competitive world of streaming, there is no single recipe for success. As platforms proliferate and audiences grow more fragmented, it has become increasingly clear that sustainable monetization demands more than one revenue stream. Today's media companies must adopt a flexible, multi-pronged approach to monetization to remain competitive, profitable, and future-ready.

Accelerating FAST Revenue With Live News and Sports

The FAST space is experiencing explosive growth. Platforms no longer want channels that simply fill space. They demand content that drives engagement, ad revenue, and repeat viewership. The bar is much higher: content must be immediate, authentic, and often exclusive. That's why the next phase of FAST will be defined by real-time, high-value live news and sports content as platforms compete to capture and keep audiences.

Manufacturers Want a Cut of Publishers’ CTV Monetization. Have They Earned It?

The expansive growth of the connected TV (CTV) landscape brought with it an explosion of new video content - and by extension, new opportunities for publishers to monetize. And yet, the landscape has been evolving in a direction where publishers don't have full monetization of their video content. So who else is vying for control? Increasingly, it's the CTV device makers - the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) - and the streaming platforms. Those businesses believe that because they're necessary parts of the ad delivery process, they deserve a share of ad revenue. 

CTV’s Frequency Problem Isn’t Fixed … But It Can Be

Despite having more tools, data, and control, overexposure remains a defining flaw of the CTV experience. Viewers still see the same ads too often. Advertisers still struggle to manage delivery across different platforms. The inefficiencies this creates are not a result of outdated technology, but a consequence of endemic fragmentation. 

Why Customer Experience is Key to Reducing Churn

Faced with the ongoing challenge of reducing churn and increasing retention, video platforms have realized that customer acquisition alone isn't enough and nor is aggressive pricing. What's really needed is a better understanding of how users engage with content and what kind of experience they're having.

Why Streaming's Rise Means the Death of DSPs

Going forward, streaming is the best way to capture mass audiences. In the world of TV advertising, CTV has fully grown up and it's time to move on from basic digital tactics. For bigger brands and old school agencies, that's easier said than done. In an effort to move away from relying on streaming TV as a targeting play, they need to divorce themselves from the technical (and digital) tools that they've become so reliant on--especially DSPs.

AI-Driven Audience Segmentation Is Reshaping Ad-Supported Streaming and Unlocking New Revenue Opportunities

Audience segmentation is the process of dividing viewers into groups based on shared characteristics, such as demographics, location, interests, and viewing behaviors. Video service providers use their own data (i.e., first-party data) to create precise audience segments, allowing for targeted advertising, personalized content recommendations, and tailored marketing strategies. This approach not only increases the relevance and effectiveness of ads for viewers and advertisers, it also helps reduce viewer resistance, generate higher acceptance, boost engagement, reduce churn, deliver more valuable advertising opportunities, and unlock new revenue streams.

Should Data Be a Piece of the Upfront Equation?

Upfronts offer a forum for the sell side to showcase content, and the buy side to begin their pre-planning for advertising commitment. Now that we're entering the streaming-first upfront era, the ad industry has yet to elevate the importance of data into the upfronts. If meaningful advertising outcomes is the goal, data should have a place on the stage, as a critical piece of the equation.

Powering the New Streaming Superstore in the Age of Subscriber Choice

The age of unprecedented subscriber growth in streaming is morphing into a new phase. Today, the video subscription market is more mature, complex, and nuanced than it ever has been, with providers increasingly focusing on strategic partnerships alongside pure direct-to-consumer growth. While content exclusivity remains the most compelling hook for any premium service, Vijay Sajja, CEO and Founder of Evergent, writes that a flurry of aggregation and bundling activity means that the biggest services will live and die by their ability to offer superior experiences and value-added personalization.

Addressable TV Is No Longer “Optional” – It’s Table Stakes

Going into 2025, advertiser conversations around addressable TV are different than they have been in past years. Considered an "add-on" by many just a few years ago, addressable TV is now considered a "must-buy" among the majority of advertisers today. Sona Pehlivanian of New York Interconnect writes that this shift represents a new level of maturity in how the advertising industry views addressable and how it is an important milestone in bringing TV advertising in line with shifts in consumer viewing behaviors.

Digging into CTV’s 3 Biggest Challenges in 2025

CTV advertising will dominate most brands' media plans in the next 2-3 years, yet major challenges persist. Suvadip Choudhury of Alliant talks about achieving scale, precision targeting, and the lack of overall education holding buyers back, but he also argues that there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Sailing the Seven “Cs” of CTV 2.0

Eric Hoffert, Chief Technology Officer of Kargo, lays out seven elements of CTV 2.0, which is coming up fast - but many brands and media companies aren't prepared. While CTV 1.0 was about targeting audiences using linear creative, CTV 2.0 is about leaning into the varied capabilities of a digital screen within the context of a multichannel campaign. Hoffert has "Seven C's" that brands and media companies must consider for CTV 2.0 to take off.

The Perfect Storm: How to Weather Media & Entertainment’s Resource Gap

Recent industry layoffs underscore the urgency for media organizations to become more efficient, find new revenue opportunities, and modernize their technology. While many businesses have been discussing doing this for years, those who don't find a way will not be one of the few left standing. Donna Thomas, EVP of Studios at Vubiquity, dives deep into how businesses can find partners ready to help overcome these challenges and start seeing results fast.

The Streaming Wars Are Over — So What Happens Next?

The streaming wars as we know it are over. Once fierce competitors are now collaborating on turf that's increasingly not even owned by them. The industry is moving away from a Subscription Economy and towards a more complex, and more lucrative, Bundle Economy — but what does this mean for subscription providers? Anil Malhotra, co-founder and CMO at subscription platform, Bango, discusses how this shift will affect the future of streaming, and how subscription-based businesses of all sizes can succeed in this new landscape.

Out of Home, On the Money: Live Event Streaming is Winning Outside the Living Room

Streamers are facing intense competition over limited household wallet share, engagement time, and the rights deals that keep viewers signed up. Today, folks are looking for creative ways to expand their audience beyond the confines of direct-to-consumer and streaming platforms while slicing and dicing rights agreements in tailored ways. Immersive shared experiences, such as live sports events, that take audiences outside of their living rooms are growing in popularity - and helping engage viewers with hyper-targeted, localized experiences.

Adopting IPv6 Will Improve CTV Advertising

IPv4 is the current IP address protocol and it's very limiting for advertisers. It bundles many devices into a single address. IPv6 has existed for years, but has not caught on because there wasn't any business pressure to switch over to it. With advertisers looking for more precision, now is the right time to make the switch. TrueData's VP of products David Berman explains why IPv6 is a meaningful improvement and what it can do for the advertising industry.