Digital

​Digital media consumers across generations are increasingly in the driver’s seat—and their expectations are at an all-time high. Some major shifts are now occurring. What are the implications for technology, media, and telecommunications companies?

A lot can change in a year, and podcasts are a perfect example of this. The medium saw a significant growth in engagement from 2016 to 2017. As a result, podcasts are becoming a darling of advertisers, as well as a trusted source for brands looking to reach consumers. But are podcasts driving results?

In the latest episode of “Behind the Numbers,” eMarketer’s Ross Benes talks with Dave Pond, Vox Media’s general manager of display and programmatic, about how to improve the ad creative of automated advertising.

The two most talked-about sectors in audio today – podcasting and Smart Speakers – post significant gains in this year’s Infinite Dial study from Edison Research and Triton Digital.

By Gonzalo López Martí – Creative Director, etc. / LMMiami.com

• Twitter has posted a profit, finally, but it still shows various existential problems.
• 90% of its revenue comes from advertising sales.
• Risk is way too concentrated: it needs to put its eggs in different baskets.
• Plus, its users base is made up of mostly elderly curmudgeons.

The simultaneous use of second-screen devices—smartphones, tablets and desktops/laptops—while watching TV has increased year to year and will continue through at least 2019.  However, 2018 will be the first year in eMarketer’s forecast in which the use of desktops/laptops in this context declines.

How many of you are purely digital marketers?  How many of you have ever tried direct mail?  

The technology I use seems to be overly eager to help me. I realized this when Facebook yet again created a photo album for me without my asking. Nice but you know what? I am not going to post a random selection of photos. I want to curate them first. And I bet that I am not the only one.  by Nigel Hollis

A recent article on the Harvard Business Review site attempts to answer the question, what makes a brand successful in the digital age? The answer is that they focus on users not buyers. Sorry, I am not buying that.  by Nigel Hollis

In the latest episode of eMarketer’s “Behind the Numbers” podcast, we continue our conversation about digital health initiatives, looking at some of the innovative services and devices that tech companies are working on to improve healthcare.

Another year older and wiser, and the digital advertising industry shows few signs of slowing down. To understand the current landscape and get a sense of what lies ahead, we dug deep into industry data as well as the Marin Advertising Index—which represents billions of dollars of annual ad spend on the Marin platform.  By Brian Finnerty

Among other key findings, half of respondents (50%) cited “insufficient supporting technology” as a primary obstacle in their ability to gain value from their data initiatives, while roughly one-third (32%) said that technology would play a vital role in leading their data initiatives this year. Of particular note, artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain technology were frequently cited as innovations that would likely command more time and attention in 2018.

At the annual IAB Leadership Meeting today, Unilever CMO spoke of the company’s commitment to “responsible” platforms, content and infrastructure, and also conveyed that it will support partners such as Facebook and Google as they invest in improving their platforms. Commentary was somewhat contrary to prior press reports which indicated that Unilever may take a harder line on digital media, much as CPG peer Procter & Gamble did at the same event last year.  By Brian Wieser – Senior Research Analyst – Advertising / Pivotal Research Group

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) released “Blockchain for Video Advertising: A Market Snapshot of Publisher & Buyer Use Cases,” an in-depth whitepaper that uncovers strong use cases for blockchain technology in digital video advertising, with a focus on over-the-top (OTT) advertising.

Data breaches. Machine-based decisions. The rise of the robots. In an increasingly digital world, do you trust the data and analytics that underpin your most critical business decisions?  Trust is now a defining factor in an organization’s success or failure. Indeed, trust underpins reputation, customer satisfaction, loyalty and other intangible assets. It inspires employees, enables global markets to function, reduces uncertainty and builds resilience.

Spanish Broadcasting System, Inc. (SBS) announced the appointment of Geraldo Arriaga as Vice President, Digital Media Sales of SBS, LaMusica App. In this role, Geraldo will spearhead all of the Company’s digital revenue efforts at the national scale, while working directly with all Digital Sales Managers,Sales Management and divisions in each one of our markets. Mr. Arriaga will ensure SBS’s Digital Media programs are fully integrated into the network’s growing “Original Content Strategy.”

BEN hires Maria Teresa Hernandez as Vice President of Client Development to lead multicultural business development

“El Dodo” is The Dodo’s First Non-English Language Edition and the World’s Only Spanish Language Animal-Focused Digital Channel

Every day, people watch billions of videos.  By Arielle Kimbarovsky

Adtaxi released the results of its Super Bowl Viewership and Consumer Streaming Trends Survey, an in-depth look at how consumers nationwide will be watching the Super Bowl, as well as an examination of their digital streaming habits more broadly. Although movies and television series still dominate the streaming world, there are important opportunities for digital advertisers to reach consumers while viewing major sporting events—namely through social media.