industry is the banner ad, now appearing
somewhere other than on the Internet.
RE/MAX teamed up with Carat Digital
and the Navic Network to target viewers
interested in home improvement and
real estate in the San Diego area.
RE/MAX targeted Cox Cable consumers who were most likely to be home-buyers and sellers and then ran a banner
ad at the bottom of their TV screens. If
viewers were interested, they could elect
(or not) to click on the banner ad using
their remote controls and be redirected
to the RE/MAX promotion. They could
also opt to be contacted by a local real
estate agent about offers and pricing.
Using the aggregated data from Cox,
RE/MAX also had the ability to run the
banner ads in front of any consumer who
watched A&E’s “Flip This House,” even
after they switched to another channel.
However, with a lot of new-fangled
technology, the essential direct response
metrics can be challenging to track.
Mitch Oscar, executive vice president
and director of Carat Digital, said in a
company news release that it’s too early
to draw any conclusions about the new
ad format. “It gets very complicated
to gauge effectiveness when you add
interactivity to advertising,” he says.
“Once you aggregate all the information,
the next step is to figure out what it all
means.”
ing to Research and Markets, a Rockville, Md.-based source for market data
and industry trends, consumers are using
smart phones and other mobile devices
to watch television episodes, Web-hosted
video content and even movies, and
the trend is starting to shift TV viewing habits and also influence broadcast
distribution. The study, “2008 Trends to
Watch: Media and Broadcasting,” said
that on-demand entertainment could
pose a threat to advertisers unless they
find alternative ways to leverage multiple
platforms.
The mobile craze in the United
States is still in its infancy
compared to countries in
Europe and Asia, but the
transformation of media
consumption is eminent.
Apple’s iPhone comes
standard with a You Tube
icon that links users directly to the site, and Apple’s
i Tunes now holds the title
of No. 1 music retailer in
the United States.
MTVN announced that
it streamed more than 57
million mobile videos be-
tween February 2007 and February 2008
— 94 percent year-over-year growth, a
record, and solidified its reputation as the
world’s largest provider of mobile video.
According to Fays, the popularity of
mobile video demonstrates just one of
many collaborative opportunities. Clients have already integrated messaging
into these video streams and negotiated
a revenue share with MTVN. In these
cases, however, some DR media metrics
are not as readily available, which makes
mobile video more appealing to brand
advertisers, or direct response marketers
with deep pockets and an appreciation
for the inherent value in brand
awareness.
“We have to remember
that the 40-inch TV in the
living room is not dead. We
know where our revenue is
coming from. — Brian”Fays, MTV Networks
PlanetGreen.com complements Discovery
Networks’ Planet Green network, which
programs shows that help viewers learn
to eat, work and live a green lifestyle.
Media on the Move
Mobile media poses one of the most
relevant marketing challenges. Accord-
Going Green with Envy
When it comes to delivering cross-network partnership opportunities and
true direct response ad solutions and accountability, Discovery Communications
is also at the top of its game. Discovery’s
100-plus worldwide networks, which
reach more than 1. 5 billion people in
more than 170 countries, includes Discovery Channel, TLC, Travel Channel,
Animal Planet and Discovery Health.
Next month, the company will
reposition its Discovery Home Channel
as Planet Green and re-launch with 24/7
eco-friendly entertainment to more than
50 million viewers. Leonardo DiCap-rio will executive produce one of the
network’s first series, which chronicles
the totally-green rebuild of Greensburg,
Kan., which was devastated by a tornado
last May.
“There are many opportunities for
product integration and sponsorship
opportunities on most of our emerging
networks such as Planet Green, Science
and the Military Channel,” says Maria
Kennedy, vice president, direct response/
