LAS VEGAS\u2014Even with all the advances being made in targeting television audiences and automating parts of the selling process, the annual ritual known as the Upfront isn\u2019t going away anytime soon. \u201cI think the Upfront\u2019s still going to be very important for at least a few more years if not even beyond, for a very specific purpose,\u201d says NBCUniversal\u2019s Tony Effik.<\/p>\n
The Upfront is the only marketplace where you can \u201cfigure out your whole year. There\u2019s a whole bunch of efficiencies attached to that,\u201d says the SVP of Client Strategy. \u201cGetting the right kind of pricing, cementing a partnership, so there\u2019s always going to be a role for that.\u201d<\/p>\n
In this interview with Beet.TV at CES 2019<\/a>, Effik also talks about the expectations of so-called direct-to-consumer advertisers and his team\u2019s job of sifting through the \u201ctreasure chest of riches\u201d that is the NBCU content portfolio.<\/p>\n At NBCU, the \u201cwhole idea of doing mass media now sits very comfortably with us bringing more targeted media, data-driven media, into the Upfront as well. So we\u2019re managing to marry both of these worlds within the existing upfront,\u201d says Effik.<\/p>\n His reference to a treasure chest of assets reflects, among other things,\u00a0NBCU\u2019s<\/a> motion picture studios, theme parks, digital assets and set-top boxes. \u201cMy team\u2019s job is to look at where the value is in that and then connect the dots for our clients.\u201d<\/p>\n