Dive Brief:
- Canoe Ventures reported video-on-demand (VOD) ad impressions reached almost 5 billion in Q1 of 2017, growing 21%, according to MediaPost Communications. Canoe Ventures analyzes 35 million U.S. households who are connected to cable providers Comcast, Cox and Charter's Spectrum.
- Around 2,300 campaigns ran through VOD channels in Q1 of 2017, with 75% coming from brands and 25% from TV networks promoting their own programming. Almost all VOD ads happen mid-roll.
- VOD ad impressions are on track to reach almost 20 billion this year compared to 17.9 billion last year, 11.8 billion in 2015 and 6.3 billion in 2014, per MediaPost.
Dive Insight:
While doom-and-gloom traditional television forecasts abound amid reports of cord cutting's acceleration and slipping ratings, the Canoe Ventures findings suggest that eyeballs still find time for larger screens, albeit not always during actual live broadcasts.
Traditional TV proponents often champion the channel's value as a hub for destination viewing events, but it can't necessarily own that space anymore, especially given the rapid proliferation of live streaming programming across the digital spectrum.
TV executives, for their part, are now betting big on VOD advertising because viewers can't fast-forward through the spots, as MediaPost points out. The healthy growth of impressions in the space makes sense, as a number of TV providers are looking to shake up their content models with more direct streaming options for set-top boxes and even skinny bundle packages that let viewers better curate their programming slate.
Still, traditional TV and cable providers are set to face down a wave of new digital competition this year. Outside of established over-the-top heavy hitters like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime, tech giants including Facebook and Google have moved into TV-like set-top box offerings as video advertising commands more of their revenue.