2018 will mark the real convergence between television advertising and its digital equivalents

This year's trends, according to Videology, revolve around programmatic technology, convergence of online video and television, personalization, audience fragmentation, industry cooperation and creation of common standards will be the main trends in 2018.

This will be the year of audiovisual communication in its most widespread aspect. A time in which content generators, advertisers and agencies will adapt their strategies and services in order to satisfy the needs of an increasingly demanding industry. Television networks are in a position to compete with large companies such as Facebook, Amazon, Netflix or Google in terms of data and scale, and even surpass them in terms of premium content and immersive relationship.

Under these premises, Teba Lorenzo, responsible in Spain for Videology, a software provider for the convergence of TV and video advertising, has ventured to launch some predictions about the sector that will be key in the industry in the coming months.

Teba Lorenzo believes "the prospects for television are bright, especially as global advertisers conduct analysis on the effectiveness of digital advertising. Now is the time to analyze the advantages of real convergence between television advertising and its digital equivalents. With fraud and brand safety issues as part of some Internet advertising, advertisers are questioning where they invest, what works and what they can trust."

Data is no longer just the domain of digital players. Collectively, the networks can compete with the well-known FANG (Facebook, Amazon, Netflix and Google) in terms of data and size, and even surpass them in terms of premium content and immersive relationship. At Videology they understand that the effort must be joint and we believe that the industry is ready. New metrics need to be defined, standards agreed upon, and compatible technologies melded to make advanced TV advertising as easy as possible for advertisers. 2018 will be the year of collaboration in media companies, and a year of new opportunities for advertisers.

Convergence of online video and television

Lorenzo emphasizes that "the ingredients to achieve the convergence of online video and television involve appropriately applying data, technology and content through the same technological platform."

The first component for the convergence of online video and television is the demand for multi-screen planning. Agencies have long understood the value of audience targeting (as it increases the relationship and effectiveness of advertising), and it has been growing steadily in recent years.

At Videology they consider that in a world of fragmented data - in addition to TV measurement companies, there are channels with registration data, operators with subscriber data, advertisers with customer data and third parties with all kinds of behavioral, purchasing and geolocation data. Online video programmatic now has a great track record of success in audience-based strategies, so it is closer than ever to TV strategies. Data is the connective tissue of the future of total television (online video + TV).

Lastly, multi-screen advertising is extremely difficult due to the multi-dimensional aspect of audience identification. Accuracy in forecasting, pricing, allocation and inventory reservation are absolutely key, since otherwise it is not possible to optimize and improve the effectiveness of advertising campaigns.

Programmatic advertising

Thanks to programmatic advertising, advertisers have the possibility of targeting enriched audiences instead of targeting the general audience profiles offered until now by traditional linear television. If television has worked for advertisers so far, personalization will make it work even better.

Los anunciantes pueden combinar sus datos propios con los datos de suscriptores para dirigirse a determinados segmentos de audiencia, saber qué hogares vieron un determinado anuncio y cuáles no, y adaptar las campañas en tiempo real de acuerdo a ello. Esencialmente, esto ofrece a los anunciantes el entorno fiable de la TV con la inmediatez y la identificación granular de los entornos digitales.