A+E has long been a believer in “content as an engine” and is on target to deliver over 2,000 hours of premium original content the coming year. The company’s creative gears are revved by continuous innovation, while staying true to the legacy of its core brand identities. This forward-looking approach has driven A+E to an enviable position as the media industry’s biggest little powerhouse, reaching an impressive two-thirds of all U.S. adults with its programming.*

We have seen the expansion from traditional cable networks to siloed streaming services to now, streamers appearing to “go back to the future” in some fashion. A+E has thrived by staying true to its content-focused strategy while others churn through changes. Since audiences now view video across both big screens and personal devices, A+E has evolved how and where it provides content to meet viewers on their terms. In a world of streaming services jockeying for position, A+E has intentionally taken a different stance, seeding its content across the total ad-supported viewing universe. This balance of foresight paired with fresh perspectives is what has kept the company relevant in the dynamic landscape of media and entertainment digital age.

Toby Byrne provides one of those fresh perspectives as the recently appointed EVP, Advertising Sales, reporting to Ad Sales President, Peter Olsen. While his own legacy of leadership experience from Fox to Zefr is a plus, he immediately recognized A+E’s clear advantage in how the company remains unique on several fronts. “The fact that we still produce such a high volume of original content is a differentiator.”

Another differentiator Byrne will proudly tout is A+E’s fully ad-supported services. The advantage to advertisers, he explained, is that not being constrained by a subscription service expands their potential audience reach. “Our content is being consumed in a broad way across many platforms, which provides us significant scale. For example, yes, we reach about two thirds of adults in the country, and when you consider that our digital distribution footprint is a little over 72 million, that is considerably larger than all but one of the big streaming players’ ad supported tiers. I think some people are surprised by that.”

It would not be an adage to say that this motivates A+E to try harder. The company is known for its audience-first mentality adage and white-glove customer service. Byrne is happy to leverage those reputation points along with their unencumbered-by-streaming position. He pointed out that dispersed and diverse distribution makes A+E highly efficient from a pricing perspective, “especially relative to a lot of streamers…of much larger companies that are focused on making streaming profitable. We went the FAST route early on, where there’s growing consumption, and we got a great head start,” he said.

“Owning that content — in fact being an IP factory,” said Byrne, “means we can do more with it creatively. We can partner with clients in ways that I think larger companies are more hesitant to.” This has ranged from show integrations to cross-platform sponsorships to original program co-pros. That nimbleness coupled with a renowned focus on brand outcomes – even down to guarantees, further differentiates A+E.

Byrne is personally looking forward to corralling brands for alignment with Kevin Costner’s The West on the HISTORY Channel. But with its “something for everyone” slate of offerings – including upcoming marquee programs such as A&E’s Find My Country House (Executive Produced by Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine), as well as Lifetime’s upcoming Gloria Gaynor biopic (Executive produced by Robin Roberts’ Rock’n Robin Productions) – he is proud to offer up strategies for every audience segment.

“Whether it’s leveraging partnerships with Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine and upcoming projects such as HISTORY Honors 250, or premium documentaries through our A+E Factual Studios in categories that range from true crime to biographies to, of course, scripted and unscripted programming, it’s just great to provide optionality to both advertisers and viewers.”

And while the more things change, the more some things will stay the same, such as A+E’s strategic focus on precision targeting and performance results for the ad community. This year, A+E rolled out new audience innovations, InterAction and PeforMAX, to provide partners with first-to-market tools and solutions that both showcase the efficacy of A+E’s content and attentive audiences and give clients the ability to optimize and evaluate their campaigns with results guaranteed. “We have pressure to perform for clients and to deliver on our promises. This drives us forward in providing that optionality and transparency, which are two key aspects of the modern media environment,” said Byrne.

With its strong slate of programming and A-List talent, coupled with its multiplatform approach and strategic partnerships, A+E will continue to be a blend of tradition and innovation, and pave the way for success through creativity, adaptability, and a forward-thinking approach in an ever-evolving media landscape.

* Source: Amobee Q3’23 Projections (applied with MSA Exposures, Adobe UVs, Nielsen DAR P18+), Nielsen Cross Platform UE – 243,538,794. A+E Ad Supported End-Points only.