Premium content, a multitude of new partnerships and how brands can create authentic resonance with consumers are the \u201ccommon threads and themes\u201d that Initiative\u2019s Adam Gilbert takes away from the Digital Content NewFronts 2018.<\/p>\n
He also traces the arc of a digital content ecosystem that is in a sort of \u201cretrograde\u201d phase as live content becomes more prevalent amid the decline of linear television viewing.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe mantra of the week: premium content at scale. Original content being produced by publishers, really in response to cultural trends,\u201d Gilbert, who is Head of Digital, Midwest, says in this interview with Beet.TV.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s premium not just in the various big-name publishers that are generating content but also in the \u201cproduction values that is elevating this content to a premium level.\u201d<\/p>\n
While many content partnerships were announced at this year\u2019s NewFronts<\/a>, they were accompanied by other collaborations, for example publisher-to-publisher and publisher-to-platform.<\/p>\n \u201cAs well as even partners such as Hulu trying to hold themselves more accountable through the likes of measurement partnerships with Nielsen, IRI as well as others,\u201d says Gilbert. \u201cThat to me as a marketer, as an advertiser, as an agency lead is critical to defining success for the future ahead of our clients and brands.\u201d<\/p>\n He also heard \u201cthe loud and continued cry towards personalization and creating authentic resonance with consumers, ultimately helping to also ensure brand safety along the way.\u201d<\/p>\n Gilbert\u2019s<\/a> perspective includes a view of the marketplace for live content that for him suggests a \u201cretrograde\u201d of how the digital marketplace has been built and where it\u2019s going.<\/p>\n \u201cDigital video has really been build off of traditional both long-form and short-form content that gets uploaded and then lives in perpetuity,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n This stands in contrast to linear TV, which has largely been live and which still draws “a wealth” of live audiences.<\/p>\n \u201cIn order to draw more audiences away from linear and traditional channels to digital platforms, we are seeing the likes of ESPN, Twitter and Facebook live. We also heard it last night at YouTube’s Brandcast<\/a> is they\u2019re continuing to double down with YouTube TV. So I expect we\u2019ll continue to see that grow in the years ahead.\u201d<\/p>\n