There\u2019s so much enthusiasm expressed for the convergence of digital media and traditional television, it\u2019s easy to wonder why targeting and measurement aren\u2019t light years ahead. But given individual business demands, \u201ceverybody\u2019s trying to get an edge,\u201d says TiVo\u2019s Walt Horstman.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, because linear television hasn\u2019t given up the Upfront negotiating mainstay, it\u2019s still going to have a longer purchase cycle than other media, Horstman explains in this one-on-one interview with Furious Corp.<\/a> CEO Ashley J. Swartz at the recent Beet Retreat in the City<\/a>.<\/p>\n Swartz senses that the buy-side and sell-side are comfortable blaming each other for a lack of progress.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople are using data as a mechanism or an edge to try to get a competitive advantage whether you\u2019re a buyer or a seller,\u201d replies Horstman, who is SVP GM, Advanced Media & Advertising at TiVo<\/a>.<\/p>\n When the sell-side embraces advanced TV, \u201cthey want to use data to find inventory that surfaces for a targeted audience to actually make it more valuable.\u201d On the buy-side, it\u2019s akin to arbitrage in the search for \u201copportunities of inventory that that sell-side doesn\u2019t understand is as valuable as it is. But I\u2019ve got some insider proprietary data that I\u2019m using to find those opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n With this dynamic as a backdrop, Horstman<\/a> sees more flexibility on the buy-side.<\/p>\n \u201cFor the sellers, there may be a little bit of risk aversion to say what inventory are we going to promote as data-driven because we want to sort of control how much gets used and control the messaging and control what data gets put against it,\u201d he says. \u201cBut if you\u2019re a buyer, you can apply it to everything.\u201d<\/p>\n One of the brightest spots that Horstman sees in the agency world is within the digital ranks. \u201cBecause for the first time, they don\u2019t view TV as this mysterious media vehicle which has only been posted or measured or targeted using just your traditional Nielsen panel. Now they can get incredible insights around the matching of data from TV to their digital campaigns, social, mobile, connected TV, all the linages they can now have converged measurement and targeting.\u201d<\/p>\n Digital practitioners \u201care taking a leadership role in this world\u201d because they\u2019ve not only lived with data and analytics but are used to doing things like attribution and media mix modeling very quickly, according to Horstman.<\/p>\n \u201cNow for the first time, they\u2019ve got access to what\u2019s been going on over in the TV world and can understand the influence of what\u2019s happening in TV on their digital campaigns and start to influence it.\u201d<\/p>\n