We’re heading to Cannes in just a few short weeks. We’re excited to be a part of one of the biggest industry events of the year, and our fearless leaders are getting ready to fly to France to meet with publishers, marketers, and teams from around the world. (Psst…if you haven’t started packing yet, don’t worry, we have you covered. Check out our Cannes packing list here.)
Matt Deets (SVP & General Manager at Smaato), Corey Kulis (VP of Marketing), and Maciek Wiktorowski (VP of Product Management will be there, and are giving us their thoughts on some of the most pertinent topics, which we expect to hear a lot more about June 20.
Corey Kulis,
VP of Marketing
Maciek Wiktorowski,
VP of Product Management
Matt Deets,
SVP & General Manager at Smaato
Lately, privacy, addressability, and personal identifiers have been making headlines. Maciek, in terms of protecting user privacy, what do you think are some of the key steps platforms must take?
MACIEK: First comply with the privacy regulations, whatever they are. Especially in the context of IAB’s TCF standard being redefined as a result of Belgium DPA process. In terms of addressability I believe that platforms should focus on providing capability to target the most popular identifiers that are alternatives to cookies and IDFAs – UID, RampID, and more. However this should be delivered over ORTB’s EIDs or Google’s encrypted signals. Platforms should be ID agnostic. Combining privacy and addressability – I believe that solutions such as Verve’s ATOM have great future. Everything stays on the user’s device and is fully anonymized.
We’ve also been hearing a lot about SPO.
MATT: Another hot topic is for sure SPO (Supply path optimization). I’m looking forward to digging in with partners. TTD, Yahoo and Amobee have all cut off Google Open Bidding for “cost savings” – but is that the only reason? I look forward to learning more about the pain points and to seeing what the future holds. At Smaato and Verve Group, we’re all about simplifying processes to drive efficiency and help our partners maximize revenue and limit overhead.
Corey, industry consolidation seems to be a theme this year. How has advertising consolidation affected the industry, and what do you think is next?
COREY: It seems like every day, there’s a new headline with major companies coming together. Just this week, the Xandr Microsoft deal was finalized, for example. AppLovin (who famously acquired MoPub) continues buying up tech and game studios, now Netflix is exploring the AVOD space and gaming space. And on top of all that, places like Tradedesk are talking about supply path optimization. Companies are no longer siloed by sector, and are expanding their reach into other facets of the ad tech world. Media companies are going into gaming…we’re starting to see tech, media, and data are all coming together under one roof.
What’s driving this? I think as data continues to gain value (and as third party data grows more scarce), companies are finding ways to own the data and data activation. These consolidations are, I think, a byproduct of all this. Data ownership is key, and these accelerated acquisitions are a surprisingly efficient way to gain compliant first party data.
And Matt, what are you most looking forward to at Cannes?
MATT: That’s easy. I’m most looking forward to seeing many of our current and future partners face to face. I recently had the pleasure of attending Programmatic IO in Vegas, and it was amazing to meet so many new (and familiar) faces in person. Cannes will be an awesome opportunity to connect – and nothing beats the French Riviera. I’m looking forward to learning from our valued partners, and finding out what’s keeping them up at night and how we at Smaato can help solve those challenges. (A French Riviera location doesn’t hurt, either.)
Consolidation of games, data and advertising. What does it all mean?
COREY: Everyday, there’s a new headline with major companies coming together or breaking out of the mold of what they are… Microsoft purchasing Activision Blizzard and Xandr, AppLovin purchasing studio’s and now MoPub, Netflix entering gaming and announcing advertising. What’s driving this? I think as data continues to gain value (and as third party data grows more scarce), companies are finding ways to own data and consumer attention in a single offering. These consolidations are, I think, a byproduct of all this. Data ownership is key, and these accelerated acquisitions are a surprisingly efficient way to gain compliant first party data.
In the OTT/CTV space especially, we’re seeing lots of evolutions. What do you think is the biggest opportunity has OTT and CTV corner the linear TV market?
MACIEK: Programmatic trading for live and on demand TV inventory is a huge opportunity. It gives publishers more control, and advertisers better reach.
At Smaato, we make it easy to dynamically fill inventory, both live and on demand. We give publishers complete control over how to auction their inventory, including by pod, by slot, and even by auction type. Buying and selling OTT/CTV inventory programmatically gives publishers and advertisers more control and better insights to help improve the viewer experience and boost campaign performance.
Join Smaato and Verve Group leaders at Cannes to talk about all this and more.
Want to book some time with Matt, Morgan, Corey, Maciek, and the rest of our amazing team? We’ll be posted up at Rado Beach Helen 9AM – 5PM Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Join us for breakfast, a three-course lunch, or drinks throughout the day. Space is limited, so be sure to book a meeting to secure your spot.
