Brand advertisers don’t want to advertise next to Web video junk.
Today, TimeWarner took steps it hopes will ensure its online
advertising customers won’t have to.
The media conglomerate announced its investment in ScanScout, a
firm with an online video advertising technology called Brand
Protector, which is supposed to be able to do just that.
Time Warner also invested in ScanScout for the contextual, in-stream
advertising capability it brings to the table, Time Warner
Investments senior vice president Rachel Lam said in a statement.
Terms of the investment were not disclosed.
Though broadband adoption has increased the popularity and accessibility
of Web video, the question remains how companies can make a profit.
It’s a pressing question, too, because there’s a fair bounty at
stake. According to a January study from Nielsen Analytics, for
access to the young, the rich and the educated, advertisers should
look to broadband video.
Of all U.S. adults, almost a quarter (24 percent) have a college
degree or greater. But the number increases to 35 percent among
adults with broadband Internet access at home. And while only 17
percent of American consumers have an annual household income of
$100,000 or more, that wealthy contingent accounts for fully 28
percent of those with broadband connectivity.
They’re young, too. The 18-to-34 demographic represents 34 percent of
those with broadband connectivity in their households, and the 35-
to-54 demographic makes up 45 percent of those with home broadband
access.
Not a bad group for marketers to inundate with their latest
“aspirational” products, right? That’s what TimeWarner is thinking.
ScanScout also announced the formation of its board of directors,
which has included Waikit Lau, the company’s president,
and Steven Lee, its CTO; Doug McFarland, its CEO, and Chris Fralic of
FirstRound Capital.