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Douglas Montgomery, Senior Analyst at Aluma Insights, who will be moderating a discussion about the revolution in retail advertising at the Cynopsis Big TV Summit, answers some burning questions on the topic.
What should AI’s most important contribution to advertising be?
There is a famous phrase, now at least 150 years ago, that still holds true. John Wannamaker’s “half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is I don’t know which half”. To solve this equation should be the goal of AI in advertising, less waste. Addressable advertising, the ability to deliver relevant messages to desired audiences at the right moment, should be greatly aided by AI technology. AI algorithms can analyze massive datasets to understand patterns and consumer behaviors on an individual level, which can then in turn be used by advertisers to create more effective ads. These ads can then be targeted much better to those consumers who are more likely to act on the ad.
What should marketers be most concerned about when it comes to AI?
There is considerable concern in the advertising industry (and the public at large) about the use and potential misuse of AI. Consumer privacy, pirating copyrighted materials, and many other issues may cause the use of AI to stall, or be used unseen. The present generally agreed-upon solution to this is for marketers to clearly state whether and how AI is being used. Much like customer service chatbots that tell consumers “I am a chatbot.”
Another major concern is accuracy. By now everyone has used AI tools like ChatGPT and found instances where the generated answer was wrong or misleading. This likely will get better going forward. However, complete accuracy (or even 99%) of the tool is likely to always remain slightly behind the use cases it is given. Artists will always push boundaries and it is doubtful the technology will be able to match the edge cases.
What future opportunities for the use of AI do you foresee?
In the immediate term, there will be an explosion of opportunities for people to use AI on an individual level, as a collaborative partner. At the recent Runway AI film festival, a panel of professional AI users “confessed” they use AI as a productive, non-judgmental, “partner” in creation. For them, AI technology is always available for an infinite number of tweaks, without the stress or pressure of a human partner. AI can also be very beneficial for the tedious task of work, like script drafting, image generation, pitch decks, etc. These are very time-consuming and for smaller entities the ability to gain efficiency here allows them to be competitive with larger ones.
By E.B. Moss
When Warner Media and Discovery joined forces, “WBD” became a multimedia behemoth made up of movie studio and television studios, iconic brands including CNN, TLC, HBO and HGTV, and streaming services for every audience, Max and discovery+. It became a content engine fueled by iconic franchises, live sports, blockbuster films, hard-hitting journalism, buzzworthy unscripted series, and everything in between.
Chief U.S. Advertising Sales Officer Jon Steinlauf explains how the sum of the WBD parts are adding up to more advertiser opportunities than ever before, the impact of “the WBD Effect,” and the efficiencies of a pioneering new first party data platform, “Olli.”
WBD has an incredible wealth of IP, from franchises like Game of Thrones, to The Situation Room, Batman to baseball. What is jumping off the screen for you – and advertisers – these days?
We’re creating a ton of high-quality original content, but we also get to tap into the amazing libraries from HBO, Discovery and more. We’re definitely benefiting from Warner Brothers having been on a bit of a run, starting with Barbie, into Wonka, into Dune, into Godzilla…. But by combining original releases with our library assets, we’re really providing a constant stream of culturally relevant, premium content across all platforms – linear, streaming, theatrical.
How are you leveraging all this for both the viewing experience and ad opportunities?
Look at theatrical successes at the box office: now they’re also having an impact when they come to Max. Because, for the first time we’re selling sponsorships of theatricals on Max. And the same concept applies with sports, with news, with linear entertainment, and movies. For our example, every NBA game that runs on TNT is running on Max, so the TNT NBA advertiser ads are simulcast, therefore getting the TNT advertiser in the NBA into Max houses. It adds reach, adds new viewers, different people, and it adds younger people.
