03/09/26: Cynopsis Media Tech Update

Monday March 9, 2026

TOP MEDIA TECH NEWS

Netflix introduced its own conversion API to help advertisers better understand the real-world impact of their ads. CAPIs are common in the digital ad sphere, but are newer to TV and streaming environments, where attribution is less straightforward. (People don’t click on TV screens the way they do on mobile or desktop devices.) Netflix says its CAPI is “designed to help advertisers prove outcomes” as ad performance takes a central role in modern video advertising strategies.

· What happened? – It’s not uncommon for streaming companies to make a splash ahead of the upfront season. In addition to a CAPI, Netflix also announced expanded targeting capabilities available to buyers accessing its inventory via Amazon DSP and Yahoo DSP. Both DSPs are offering buyers audience segments that should help them target Netflix viewers based on information such as purchase activity and life stage.
· So what? – Netflix has been working to address advertiser demands for more advanced targeting and measurement since it first launched ads in late 2022. As the latest streaming platform to launch a CAPI, Netflix wants the industry to know that “we’ve been listening closely to what advertisers are asking for,” according to the company’s blog post.
· Now what? – Netflix may appear to have lost the bidding battle over Warner Bros. Discovery to Paramount Skydance, but can it win the intensifying streaming wars? Competition for subscribers and ad investments is hitting a fever pitch, and it remains to be seen how marketers and media buyers respond to the upfront presentations and pitches they’ll hear in May.

Versant Media, which spun off from Comcast in January, reported its first fiscal earnings as a public company. Overall revenue was down 5% year over year to $6.69 billion, while advertising revenue last year was $1.6 billion – representing a 9% YOY drop. Going forward, Versant expects its efforts to expand beyond the pay TV business to create new revenue streams that will sustain the company into the future.

· What happened? – Comcast spun off Versant Media in January in an attempt to separate declining cable assets from digital counterparts that are growing much more quickly, including the Peacock streaming service. Versant Media’s portfolio of networks includes CNBC, Fandango, MS NOW (formerly MSNBC), E! and USA Network. And Versant has plans to launch individual subscription services for the first three networks on that list.
· So what? – Streaming is a clear choice for a company looking to broaden its horizons behind the declining pay TV biz. But the streaming space is already saturated. To stand out from the crowd, Versant Media is pitching its business as more than a traditional streaming company. Instead, Versant sees itself as a digital-first hub that spans multiple channels.
· Now what? – Later this year, Versant will launch a subscription service for CNBC tailored to retail investors, including stock recommendations and analytics. It will also launch an ad-supported Fandango streaming service as well as a subscription service for MS NOW that includes a live video component.

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BEST OF THE REST

The NHL is running a new campaign designed to pique the interest of new viewers – and, in turn, new advertisers. The campaign includes nearly 20 commercials that are tailored for specific games and events in the league’s content slate. The NHL is trying to reach and attract younger viewers in particular – including by integrating bite-sized highlights into live sports games, as David Proper, the NHL’s senior EVP of media and international strategy, discussed during the Convergent TV World conference in New York City last week. The NHL’s real target is the countless marketers investing in media that interests younger consumers.

NBCUniversal and measurement startup HyphaMetrics inked a new deal designed to bolster the media company’s measurement chops. NBCU is licensing the measurement firm’s panel, called the UNIeVista Panel, to help it track media and ad exposures across platforms at the individual person level. This panel is HyphaMetrics’ first product in seven years, after the company was found not guilty of infringing on a couple of Nielsen’s patents.

In other Netflix news, the entertainment giant took the stage at LiveRamp’s RampUp conference in San Francisco last week to tout its efforts to bolster ad targeting and, in turn, make its advertising more effective. During the conference, Netflix underscored recent upgrades to its audience targeting capabilities, including the introduction of Amazon Audiences and Yahoo Audiences available to buyers through the respective DSPs.

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Seventy percent of CTV advertisers plan to raise their ad spend this year by an average of 17%, according to a recent study from Advertiser Perceptions and Premion. Roughly three-quarters of that CTV spend is expected to comprise reallocation from other media channels such as linear TV, paid search and social. Notably, that remaining 25% should represent incremental budget increases. Plus, roughly half of streaming and online video advertising is expected to be transacted programmatically this year, according to the research.

Smartly.io, an AI-driven ad platform, is teaming up with Amazon DSP to give its buyers a way to extend their video campaigns into Amazon’s streaming inventory, including Prime Video and Fire TV. In addition to reducing the operational workload required to make channel-specific creative, Smartly also expects its collaboration with Amazon to give buyers better visibility into performance metrics across platforms.

WHOOP, a brand that makes wearable fitness devices, inked a partnership with the DSP Viant to better understand whether its ads are actually working. The idea is that the brand will be able to link connected TV ad impressions to actual actions, including sales. Most notably, the partnership represents another step toward the industry’s goal for reliable outcomes-based measurement as performance emerges as a top priority in CTV media plans.

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Check out more jobs in Cynopsis Classifieds »

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TELEVISION ACADEMY/NORTH HOLLYWOOD, CA:
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SALES DIRECTOR – OMG
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