Dems say their focus cost, chaos and corruption are what drove the blue wave this week. Agree or not on why it happened, very few would argue those interconnected forces aren’t wreaking havoc on Americans.
But when you think about it: cost, chaos and corruption are especially plaguing the media industry.
- The exploding market for attention has created chaos for consumers and the industry.
- Politically motivated forces are consolidating media companies and systematically neutering journalism and weakening the fourth estate.
- The currencies are manipulated by a monopolist with antiquated metrics, backed by a questionable accreditation system.
- Ad fraud and ad taxes plague CTV, hidden behind a lack of transparency and broad adoption of new measurement standards for accountability.
- Broken identity systems are creating massive waste.
- Walled gardens and AI companies are decimating the open web and dictating what we see by slapping algorithms on the free flow of information.
- And all of it drives the cost of doing business up, which kills jobs, stifles investment and moves the center of power away from the storytellers and firmer into grips of Wall Street and Silicon Valley investors.
It’s worth asking ourselves what are we doing to unwillingly contribute or counter these forces? What partners we work with, what systems do we perpetuate, what bullshit do we tolerate as “part of how media works” and what decisions and actions can we deploy to make a difference?
While there is always more we can do, a reflection on this question was also a reminder about why we have kept plugging away at TVREV.
At our core, we are trying our best to attack chaos, costs and corruption by bringing you five free weekly newsletters - including Hot List, an organized curation of what’s happening to help you keep up (below). Knowledge workers shouldn’t have to pay for every analyst opinion or curation service, nor should we be forced to cede that exchange of ideas to robots.
We are covering the plagues and challenges in our industry through a collection of analysts and experts, insights and op-eds—all in plain speak. Our contributors are honest folks with experience that genuinely want to help. Especially Alan Wolk, who cares so much about these topics he just released a book about What Happens When the Monoculture Collapses.
We are championing those trying to fix the problems through Thought Leaders Circle (now accepting 2027 applications).
We know the industry needs deeper dives, like the new special report out this week on The State of CTV Advertising.
If you or your org want to get involved with what we’re doing here, want advice or have ideas on how to stop some of 3 C’s you see: contact us and or hit me up directly.
Thanks for being here. Enjoy this week’s Hot List!
How NBC Pulled Off An Election Night Peacock Wave - Alan Wolk
The Midterms Changed The Calculus For Broadcast Consolidation - Tim Hanlon
Tube Trends: How TV News Utilized YouTube On Election Night - John Cassillo
The Brand Goes Direct: It Builds Its Own Media - Emanuele Landi
Political Ads' State-By-State CTV Takeover - John Cassillo
Republicans Outspent Democrats on Political Ads. We Saw What Happened - Jon Lafayette
A G&T Is Not A Martini - J.P. O’Keefe
NEW PODCAST: Local TV Has The Content. YouTube Offers Another Stage.
SPECIAL REPORT: STATE OF CTV ADVERTISING
FREE TO DOWNLOAD: The State of CTV Advertising
- Why ad dollars don’t automatically follow eyeballs.
- What the fragmented Feudal Media landscape means for advertisers.
- Why trying to replace Nielsen hasn’t settled the measurement debate.
- What contextual targeting can actually deliver.
- Why the TV interface is becoming prime advertising real estate.
- How AI could bring a new set of advertisers to television. What’s likely to change by 2030.
It is FREE thanks to our sponsors TiVo Ads and Magnite.
OUT NOW: Alan Wolk’s New Book “Welcome to the Age of Feudal Media”
Is Something Up With YouTube’s Ad Business? [Next In Media]
- TL;DR: YouTube’s ad revenue grew only 9% to $11.2B in Q3 while its share of TV viewing hit 15.8% and rivals like Roku, Tubi, and Magnite posted stronger growth.
As Roku’s Merger With Fox Clears More Hurdles, Streaming Provider Delivers Strong Q3 Results [Deadline]
- TL;DR: As its pending $22 billion merger with Fox Corp. continues to wind its way through the regulatory process, Roku delivered strong third-quarter results Monday.
Amazon’s Ads nears $20 billion in Q3 as it bets on agentic AI to fuel further growth [Digiday]
- TL;DR: Amazon’s ad business generated almost $20B in Q3, up 12%, and Amazon expects high-teens growth in Q4.
CTV Overtakes Cable in Political Ad Spend for the First Time in a Midterm [Adweek]
- TL;DR: Political advertisers have spent a record $11.4B this midterm cycle, up 28% from 2022, according to AdImpact.
Roku Beta Launches AI-Driven Advertising Platform [Media Play News]
- TL;DR: Roku announced the beta launch of “Roku Outcomes,” an AI-driven advertising platform that allows marketers to optimize streaming TV campaigns for specific actions.
Netflix Launches First AI-Branded Content Recommendations Feature on TVs [Variety]
- TL;DR: Netflix launched “AI Discover,” a TV tab that generates recommendations in real time based on mood and theme, its first feature explicitly branded as AI.
Parks: 275 SVOD Services Operating in the U.S. [Media Play News]
- TL;DR: Parks Associates counts 275 subscription streaming services in the U.S., along with 141 ad-supported on-demand services and 60 FAST platforms.
Hot Links
- LG Ad Solutions Names Abhijit Pol SVP, Product and Engineering [TVTechnology]
- Netflix hires Darshan Kantak to lead ads platform [Axios]
- Tatari Gives CTV Ad Matching The Max Treatment [AdExchanger]
- Disney Expected to Lay Off Thousands of Staffers in Biggest Round of Cuts This Year [Variety]
- Fox Revenue Jumps 22% to $4.6 Billion as World Cup, Political Ads Fuel Record Quarter [The Wrap]
- Comcast Advertising Reveals Insights Amid Record-Breaking Midterm Political Ad Spend [Adweek]
- Down To The Wire To Acquire; Meta Wants To Be TV, Too [AdExchanger]
- Skydance Reorgs TV and Streaming Distribution Leadership Team Post-Merger, Eight Execs to Exit [Variety]
- Blockgraph & FreeWheel Add Premium TV Proximity Targeting [TVNewsCheck]
- Disney expands Super Bowl ad inventory with streaming-only offerings [Sports Business Journal]
- Hollywood Quietly Banning Prediction Market Betting on Movie News, Release Dates (Exclusive) [The Hollywood Reporter]
- The Trade Desk Brings Back Dave Pickles Amid Growing Pains [Adweek]
- Versant Sees Q3 Profit Drop Despite Upticks in Non-TV Operations [Variety]
- Can Tubi and Roku sustain Fox’s growth as sports and political ad dollars fade? [Campaign]
Hanlon’s Local Links
- Democrats Prepare To Boost FCC Scrutiny After Midterm Elections - Claire Bernard [Bloomberg Government]
- Ted Cruz Aims To Stack FCC With Republicans Before Democrats Take Senate Control - Jon Brodkin [Ars Technica]
- As Political Ad Spending Skyrockets, Broadcast TV Remains King - Katie Robertson [New York Times]
- Broadcasters, Enjoy The Midterm Windfall. Will Billionaires Buy Again? - Mike Blinder [Editor & Publisher]
- Scripps Is Cutting Anchors And Adding Reporters. Is This The Future Of Local TV News? - Kerwin Speight [Poynter]
- Forcing NextGen TV On Consumers Is A Sign That Broadcast Has Already Lost The Race - Matthew Keys [LinkedIn]
- Is the Requirement That Broadcasters Give Lowest Unit Rates To Political Candidates Unconstitutional? The Republican Party Files A Lawsuit To Find Out [David Oxenford - Broadcast Law Blog]
- WXLO To Localize Ad Content On Boston Boosters - Lance Venta [RadioInsight]
- Blockgraph, FreeWheel Expand Location-Based TV Ad Targeting - Matthew Keys [TheDesk]
