605 and Inscape Make the Best Sandwich, According to Ben Tatta of 605

The data analytics company 605 just announced that its dataset will now include Inscape’s viewing data, expanding 605’s footprint to more than 20 million U.S. homes. Inscape is a wholly-owned subsidiary of VIZIO and a leading provider of automatic content recognition (ACR) technologies and cross-screen metrics. Previously known as Cognitive, VIZIO is the largest single-source of opt-in smart TV viewing data available today.

According to the press release, this arrangement places 605 as one of the few companies in the industry to capture and measure set-top-box data along with other sources of TV viewership data, such as over the air (OTA) and basic over-the-top (OTT) viewing data from Inscape’s more than 10.5 million smart TVs. 

Ben Tatta, Co-Founder and President, offered further insights: 

Charlene Weisler:  What metrics are being used?

Ben Tatta: In addition to household-level impression and engagement metrics 605 maintains a library of over 5,000 household attributes (that are deterministically matched to the viewing data) that provide advertiser and programmer clients an unprecedented level of granularity when measuring and analyzing audiences and campaigns.  605 can also match digital data and 1st party CRM data to provide additional dimension on a cross-screen basis...and among unique customer types/segments.  The latter is essential in proving full funnel attribution to clients.  

Weisler: How will this partnership change, improve, enhance 605?

Tatta: With the addition of Inscape, 605 will now maintain one of the largest, matchable data-sets in the U.S.    By combining set-top box data and ACR data 605 will be in a unique position to measure nearly 100% of viewing in a household regardless of TV manufacturer, pay-TV provider or OTT service for more than 20 million homes nationwide.

Weisler: What are your expectations once this partnership is in place for a few months?

Tatta: ACR data and set-top box data are like peanut butter and jelly.  The two datasets complement each other perfectly.  Our hope is that in three months we will have the best PBJ sandwiches available anywhere.  

This article first appeared in Cynopsis

Bringing Linear TV into the Addressable Market – The Spectrum and 605 Data Partnership

“Linear television does not come to mind when people think of advanced products,” noted Rob Klippel, Senior Vice President of Advanced Advertising Products and Strategy, Spectrum Reach, but being able to do targeted one-to-one addressable in linear television is becoming closer to a reality. 

Of course, “even just applying data to linear TV, even if it is not one-to-one targeted, to better find audiences and on the back end use data to find ad exposure is part of an advanced advertising group,” he concluded.

Now as the dust settles on the Spectrum and 605 data partnership, we begin to see how addressability in linear TV has taken a step forward with the introduction of their AudienceApp data platform. This new platform was developed in partnership between Spectrum Reach and 605 for linear media planning and optimization. I sat down with Ben Tatta, Co-Founder & President of 605 and Rob Klippel to learn more:

Charlene Weisler: What types of data points will be made available by Charter for 605?

Ben Tatta: As the second largest cable operator in the U.S., Charter provides 605 with aggregated TV platform data from all its cable system operations nationally resulting in more robust and granular audience measurement and analytics solutions. Charter data gives us broad national reach and deep coverage in 13 of the top 20 U.S. markets. As part of the partnership, we also have matching rights to Charter data giving us the ability to append a broad array of household attributes to the viewing data (in a secure manner that protects privacy).

Weisler: What are some of the challenges?

Tatta: This partnership is a major step in fueling the industry migration from sample-based measurement to true census-level measurement moving beyond traditional ratings to deeper, more actionable, impressions-based data. The challenge will be educating and encouraging the industry to embrace this transition, which will be of benefit to all from advertisers, programmers, providers – ultimately the buyers and sellers.

Weisler: Will there be the ability to use the data in some form to measure cross platform?

Klippel: Yes. We are capturing and providing aggregated and anonymized viewing across all platforms.    This gives us the ability to not only leverage cross-platform insights for planning and execution, but also post-campaign analysis and attribution.

Weisler: What other data sets will be part of this effort?

Tatta: 605 uses data from over 40 million addressable households to deliver its ad and campaign analytics services and also maintains a library of over 1,500 demographics, behavioral, transactional and psychographic attributes and possesses consumer records for 131 million unique households, containing 240 million adults.

Klippel: Charter has a robust set of first party and third party attributes that we leverage for the most effective and efficient way to deliver specific segments for our local and regional advertisers.  A unique aspect of our partnership with 605 is the broad append rights to enable similar detailed customer segmentation for national advertisers and programmers.

Weisler: What metrics will you use?

Tatta: In addition to more granular, household level impressions data, 605 also measures content and/or ad consumption on a second-by-second basis.  605 also developed a set of engagement and conversion metrics designed to measure ad response, ROI and attribution.  Ultimately, the metrics we utilize vary based on the unique objectives of our clients.

Weisler: Have any advertisers signed up for this yet?

Tatta: 605 currently works with blue-chip advertisers such as Walmart and Uber. We are also working with programmers such as A&E to help them understand specific audience attributes to enable them to serve their advertisers and connect with specific audiences. We have also added several new advertisers following the launch of AudienceApp.

Klippel: AudienceApp was launched in August and our goal is to have all markets launched by the end of Q2 2018.  In the markets that have launched, AudienceApp has had an immediate impact on our customers and the way campaigns are being planned.  We have seen early and open adoption by our local customers, changing the way existing customers are buying TV as well as bringing new advertisers to local TV.

Weisler: How will this be marketed?

Tatta: Our efforts center heavily on industry education and building awareness about the benefits of census-level audience measurement and advanced analytics relative to TV advertising and programming. Ultimately, it’s about doing really great client work so being able to communicate some of the interesting things we’re doing for clients like Walmart and Charter is truly a privilege.

Klippel: AudienceApp is a mobile tool that will be in the hands of our sales account executives to allow them to work in real-time with their customers to plan and optimize against audiences.  In addition, we will be working to build awareness of the benefits and effectiveness of using viewership and audience data to drive advanced campaign planning and advanced analytics, ROI and attribution.

This article first appeared in www.Mediapost.com
 

Joining Forces to Create Addressable Measurement Standards

Cross MediaWorks, parent company of Cadent, one2one Media and TCA, is partnering with TV data analytics firm, 605, to advance addressable by creating a new measurement standard. Not only will this effort promise to scale the addressable television marketplace, it will also create an independent, third party verification of performance to standardize impressions - based television campaigns and actionable insights.

Nick Troiano, Chief Executive Officer, Cross MediaWorks, and Ben Tatta, Co-Founder and President of 605, explained their joint vision and approach:

Charlene Weisler: What are the expectations from this partnership?

Nick Troiano: At Cross MediaWorks our main objective is to make it easy for TV buyers to understand and use Advanced TV solutions. Our new agreement with 605 will help us build a seamless solution to utilize important data and inventory providers in the Advanced TV space, making it easier for brand marketers to add targeting capabilities to their traditional TV buys. 605 has an expansive data portfolio that allows Cross MediaWorks clients to better target on TV.

Ben Tatta: This partnership centers on the development of a standardized approach to planning, measuring and optimizing audience-based ad campaigns on TV - executed on either an addressable or optimized-linear basis.

Weisler: What datasets are being used and how will they be integrated into Cadent’s business?

Troiano: We work with more than 200 MVPDs across the country and have access to more than 100 million TV households. The new solution with 605 allows our clients to home in on a specific target audience and go beyond simple segmentations, like age and gender, on a tremendous scale.

Tatta: Cross MediaWorks will leverage 605’s census-level viewership data, combined with a vast array of third-party audience attributes including both behavioral and transactional data-sets.

Weisler: Will it be guaranteed?

Troiano: We work with all our clients to make sure they reach their target audience and are happy with their campaign results, but do not offer specific guarantees.

Weisler: Any challenges in implementing the data?

Tatta: 605’s core data platform was designed to transform raw TV tuning records into refined, measurement-grade, match-able data. We’ve worked closely with Cross MediaWorks on the design and implementation of these new capabilities to ensure they can now take advantage of more robust data and measurement in a more seamless and scalable way.

Weisler: What are the next steps?

Troiano: Evangelizing and helping educate clients. The evolution of TV targeting is still fairly new, but is real and actionable today. We look forward to working with clients to help them reach their target audience at scale on TV.

Tatta: While the initial focus of the partnership is on the introduction of standardized planning and measurement for audience-based TV campaigns, the next phase will encompass more advanced campaign analytics, including brand and sales attribution, ROI analytics, etcetera.

Weisler: What have been the reactions from the clients? 

Troiano: Overwhelmingly positive – clients are excited to scale the business and really zero in on their target audience.

Tatta: This partnership was based solely on client and market demand for more robust targeting and measurement solutions for TV.

Weisler: Can you give an example of how it will be executed?

Troiano: I will provide you with an example of how we work with an Auto client – for both Cadent and one2one Media: With Cadent, we provide an efficient broad reach campaign on TV – then follow up in another campaign to target a specific audience of consumers who are looking to buy a car and target the specific days, times and networks that audience watches. With one2one Media using addressable advertising, we target specific households of that same audience with the same message. By utilizing 605 data we can create an independent, third-party verification of performance providing a standardization of an impressions-based television campaigns.

This article first appeared in www.MediaVillage.com

How Will Automated TV Spend Grow?

Programmatic and automated TV spend is on the rise. Addressable TV spend will grow 65.8 percent—reaching $1.26 billion in revenue—according to a July 2017 eMarketer estimate. While this is still a small portion of the overall media spend, the robust growth forecast nevertheless indicates that addressable and audience-targeted media buying is becoming a force within the media ecosystem.

As technology continues to advance and even more datasets make their way into the buying and selling parlance, expect the growth to not only continue but also accelerate. But with increased competition from buying platforms, walled gardens of data, and technology that’s, well, always changing, how can addressable continue its impressive growth and amass a greater slice of the advertising pie?

Be Simple—Not Complex
One way for addressable TV to strengthen its market position is by making the purchasing cycle easy and real-time, essentially like the way digital is purchased. This simplicity will create a more seamless and satisfying purchasing experience for advertisers.

Ben Tatta, president and co-founder of media measurement and analytics firm 605, notes that the growth of automated TV spend “will be driven in the coming years by improved audience measurement, the ability to use data to more effectively target specific audiences, and the emergence of new applications.” Tatta explains that automated TV platforms should simplify the planning and buying process and “enhance the returns on a marketer’s investment across local and national markets.”

Read the full article on the Videa blog.

The Dawn of True Advertising Attribution Measurement?

Advertising attribution modeling is one of the biggest challenges in cross-platform advertising. Although there are several companies and organizations offering insight on the most effective form of attribution, the jury is still out on its overall use.

The Coalition for Innovative Media Measurement (CIMM) recently released the findings of a study on attribution conducted by Sequent Partners, a brand and media metrics consultancy. Their main conclusion? As an industry, advertising has made some progress toward the development of an attribution model across media. But there’s still more work to do and—at least in the near term—there are few viable systems able to holistically capture cross-platform consumer behaviors.

Companies like 605 and comScore, however, are developing new approaches to attribution that could prove to be breakout solutions. Could this be the dawn of true advertising attribution measurement?

Facing the Challenges

Please read the full article at the Videa blog.

Ben Tatta of 605 on the Future of Legacy Measurement

As Co-Founder and President of 605, Ben Tatta has embarked on an exciting new venture, working alongside Kristin Dolan, who has a deep appreciation for the increasing value and importance of data and analytics in the media and entertainment industries. 

605 launched late last year when Dolan Family Ventures acquired Analytics Media Group (AMG), which targeted and optimized TV messages for the 2012 Obama campaign and transitioned into advising corporations in their marketing and advertising efforts through analysis of a national footprint of viewing data from a variety of sources.

Twenty-five years ago Tatta worked for the publishing division of ABC when it was just starting to convert everything from print to digital. Following that, he helped large media companies adopt a web presence. Next, at USA Network, he began to work in the convergence of digital and television. It was there he gained more appreciation for advanced TV, which solidified a triple play of experience in cross platform conversion, data and advanced media. Tatta and I met while we both worked for Cablevision (I was at a division of Cablevision - Rainbow Media, now AMC Networks) where he was a huge supporter of set-top box data and a source of knowledge on sales applications like telescoping. He ran the media sales division and also launched their new data analytics group where he "cut his teeth" learning and applying innovative firsts using set-top box data for advertising and programming analytics.

I reconnected with my former colleague to ask him about his new venture.

Charlene Weisler: What is your definition of TV?

Ben Tatta: I see it more as content. Television is programming predominantly watched on the large screen -- but it doesn't need to be. TV content is pushed online but commoditizing it as video doesn't do it justice. A lot of TV is characterized as video content but not a lot of video content is TV-worthy content. There is a great difference between commercial, paid TV programming and user-generated video in terms of the storytelling, the episodic nature and session lengths of either -- the average length of view.  Its like a novel versus comics.  Both could be considered forms of literature but each is different (because of) the way viewers consume and interact with them.

Weisler: Tell me about 605.

Tatta: The business is focused on leveraging census-level audience data derived from set-top boxes and other connected devices to provide more precise measurement for programmers and advertisers. We feel strongly that today's legacy measurement is not adequate in keeping up with audience fragmentation and it is certainly data that is not actionable. TV can gain tremendously by being able to mirror a lot of the optimization and measurement capabilities that are currently available on digital platforms. We are focused on aggregating as much set-top box data as possible from MVPDs across the country and then putting that into a form that is both actionable and measureable. In this way, programmers and advertisers can get more actionable data and insights to understand how content and advertising is performing and how to best optimize it.

Weisler: What do you think the future is for legacy measurement of age and gender?

Tatta: These are two attributes among thousands that are currently available and so they are a proxy for what an advertiser is really interested in. Many major marketers today have very granular CRM systems and know who their audiences are. The more that we as an industry can extend their own definition of customer and prospect rather than having to put it through an age and gender sell through, the better we are. The big question is "Are age and gender going to continue to be the basis of currency?"  Our general philosophy is that even though advertisers are buying on age and gender today, that doesn't mean that they can't measure and optimize on more granular attributes. For the time being, there is an opportunity to augment age and gender with a whole litany of other attributes. Over time it will evolve to a hybrid or new currency.

Weisler: Where do you see legacy measurement three years from now?

Tatta: Its hard to know where things will go but in England they have already developed a hybrid measurement. There will always be a role for focus groups or panels to study certain things and to aggregate from that. Where it is deficient is in measuring things that are too small or niche. People are moving into non-measured modes or modes that cannot be measured by the existing panel. That is a fundamental problem that needs to be fixed. Having a more census-based approach with all of this new data will tackle that. So, if an ad campaign is not converting well, we can then understand why (that is happening). Is it the message?  Is it the media?  Is it the scheduling?  We can then effectively measure the optimization techniques that are put into place. At that point, GRPs will become less relevant.