REMOTE WORKSPACES EVERYWHERE — July 16, 2020 — NBCUniversal today unveiled its suite of new Content and Commercial Innovations for the 2020-2021 season, building upon its years-long commitment to reimagining the commercial experience for viewers and driving sustainable, scaled impact for marketers. The 11 new innovative ad formats provide unprecedented access to NBCUniversal’s creative and talent resources, tap into the senses to empower marketers’ stories to stand out, and offer new ways for advertisers to innovate how they tell their stories nationally & globally all available exclusively via NBCUniversal’s One Platform.

“At NBCUniversal, we’re committed to freeing brands from the limitations of traditional advertising by empowering them to transform culture into connection, attention into engagement, and passion into purchase intent,” said Josh Feldman, Executive Vice President, Head of Marketing & Advertising Creative at NBCUniversal. “Clients and agencies alike are looking for creative, authentic ways to partner, and reach audiences with a highly engaging viewer experience. With these new formats, we’re bringing bold creative visions to life by democratizing access to our talent, and introducing new ways to engage the senses and hold attention spans.”

The new slate of Content and Commercial Innovations fall across three key categories:

UNMATCHED TALENT: This year, NBCUniversal is taking Talent as Influencers to the next level. Previous executions of Talent as Influencers have led to double-digit gains in ad differentiation and attention, compared to the standard commercial experience. With the 2020-21 slate of ad innovations, NBCUniversal is building on that success and providing unprecedented partnership opportunities with its expansive creative and talent resources globally.

• The Talent Room is One Platform’s influencer engine, connecting brands with the right talent to authentically share the brand’s story. The Talent Room is powering tonight’s “30 Rock: A One-Time Special,” which airs on NBC at 8/7c.

• 1:1 Talent Surprise creates a personal connection between viewers and their favorite talent during commercial breaks with live, branded video chats.

• Set on Set puts a new spin on the beloved live-read, bringing viewers directly onto iconic sets with the talent they love to hear a brand’s message.

INNOVATING CONTENT: NBCUniversal is doubling down on its unparalleled storytelling capabilities, creating the content people love, and advertising that drives +35% lift in brand memorability, +31% in ad likeability and inspires action around the world: 

• Product Sync, which was first announced during NBCUniversal’s One Industry Update in May, is a product integration innovation that leverages the power of AdSmart’s audience data to recommend impactful programming nationally and globally across NBCUniversal’s One Platform. 

• (This) Matters provides brands with a platform to tell a thematic story that resonates with audiences. These contextually-published, bold new editorial-style content franchises serve as trusted sources for healthcare, tech, style & personal travel and more.  

• Brand Experience enables marketers to authentically weave their stories into fan-favorite shows, in partnership with NBCUniversal’s best-in-class team of writers, producers and talent. 

• 1221 Films puts a brand in the director’s seat, with new, long form content opportunities to take a deep dive into culturally relevant topics.

• Next Gen News reaches, engages & empowers GenZ storytellers globally by giving them a dedicated platform & tools to create stories that are made by, for and about them.

SENSORY EXPERIENCES: NBCUniversal’s new ad formats hold attention spans, engage the senses, and tug at the heartstrings, transforming advertising into a sensory experience. Sensory-driven campaigns drive five-times the search impact for brands, compared to a single standard commercial.

• Brand Fusion creates visual continuity between a brand’s advertising and the program it’s featured in, pulling in marketers’ unique color palette and other visual elements to transcend the pod. 

• Pods with a Purpose put a company’s mission at center stage, providing one platform to connect with audiences about the causes they are passionate about. 

• Experiences at NBCU bring fans and their favorite content together, with unique brand integrations as the connective tissue. Whether it’s virtual today, or in person tomorrow, marketers can now meet audiences wherever they are in the world with textured, authentic experiences.

The latest slate of Content and Commercial Innovations from NBCUniversal is the continuation of a journey that first began back in 2018. To date, NBCUniversal has introduced nearly 30 new innovative ad formats. From reducing commercial clutter with Prime Pods, to expertly blending content and commerce with ShoppableTV and NBCUniversal Checkout, NBCUniversal’s approach to reimagining the commercial experience is fueled by years of research that demonstrates significant impact for marketers, while improving the viewer experience. 92% of viewers appreciate commercial innovations compared to standard ads, while 88% are more likely to remember the featured brand. What’s more, 78% are less likely to change the channel.

The journey continues tonight during NBCUniversal’s “30 Rock: A One-Time Special,” where innovative ad formats including Scripted Commercial Launch, Supersized Show, and more will be on display, demonstrating the impact of commercial innovation on the viewer and advertiser experience. 

These results and more are also the inspiration behind Peacock’s unique advertising offering, as NBCUniversal launched its new streaming service this year with a 100% innovation-driven ad experience. Many successful NBCUniversal ad innovations, such as ShoppableTV, will be headed to Peacock, while new ones launched on the streamer have the opportunity to be scaled across the full NBCUniversal ecosystem.

All told, the 11 new Content and Commercial Innovations, combined with NBCUniversal’s existing suite of innovative ad formats, empower marketers and the creative community to connect with their audiences in engaging environments globally, across NBCUniversal’s One Platform.

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For visual assets please see HERE.

Press Contact:

Annie Betz, [email protected]