Navigating the Evolving Media Landscape
OCTOBER 24 @ 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM PDT
In-Person & Virtual | In-Person Event Followed by a Cocktail Reception at Warner Bros. Discovery Studio Lot 4000 Warner Blvd. Burbank, CA 91522
The media landscape continues to evolve, arguably at the fastest rate ever. The meaning of OTT has changed from “Over-the-Top” to include all video content on all platforms, and the ARF’s 2023 OTT conference is about “OTT And Beyond.” We will present research-based insights on the various forms of TV/video as well as expert discussions of the data’s implications.
Registration/Breakfast – 9:00 – 10:00am PT
SJR Theater – Main Stage
Morning Sessions – 10:00am – 12:05pm PT
10:00 – 10:05am
Opening Remarks
Scott McDonald, Ph.D. – President & CEO, ARF
10:05 – 10:10am
Welcome
Natasha Hritzuk — VP Global Entertainment Insights, Corporate Strategy, Warner Bros. Discovery
10:15 – 11:45am
New Insights on the Changing Viewing and Media Landscape
10:15 – 10:35am
Has Streaming Reached Equilibrium?
As the dust settles across the streaming landscape, the key platforms are establishing themselves, and their audiences. This presentation will share the next chapter after 2022’s Summer of Streaming, and look at the next big opportunity: content cohabitation across platforms.
Brian Fuhrer — SVP, Product Strategy & Thought Leadership, Nielsen
James Petretti — SVP North American Distribution Research, Sony Pictures Entertainment
10:35 – 10:45am
Split Stream: Fresh Findings from the DASH TV Study
Streaming TV came of age with the pandemic, when almost everyone was curled up on the couch bingeing – and not watching ads. Now the economics of the industry and the needs of marketers are pushing the pendulum back toward ad-supported TV in general, and ad-supported streaming in particular. How are viewers making the transition – and how quickly? New data from the latest wave of the DASH 2023 TV universe study reveals shifts in streaming and other dynamics that are reshaping how Americans connect to and watch TV.
Paul Donato — Chief Research Officer, ARF
Jim Meyer — General Manager, DASH
10:45 – 11:05am
Entertainment Now Study: Uncovering the Drivers Behind Gen Z’s Viewing Behaviors
While all generations have shifted their media use and viewing behaviors, the most divergent signals are coming from Gen Z. It has been shown that Gen Z devotes less time than other generations to watching long form content. A better understanding is needed on how to maximize Gen Z’s time spent on traditional entertainment content and uncover the drivers behind Gen Z’s viewing preferences. Insights will be revealed from a multi-phase study by WBD Corporate Data and Insights consisting of longitudinal entertainment consumption diaries, plus a large quantitative study that enables modeling the drivers and motivations underlying consumption behaviors.
Natasha Hritzuk — VP Global Entertainment Insights, Corporate Strategy, Warner Bros. Discovery
Vera Chien — Executive Director Global Entertainment Insights, Corporate Strategy, Warner Bros. Discovery
11:05 – 11:20am
Hub’s Highlight Reel: The Top Trends for 2024
In 2023 the streaming revolution entered a new chapter, with evolving challenges for providers. For instance, how can they deliver more value to keep the subscribers they have – without cutting their price? How can they maximize the ROI on more limited budgets for new content? Bundle with partners to become more discoverable, and less churn-able? Drawing on the past year’s research, Hub will share the top trends TV platforms need to know to be competitive in 2024.
Jon Giegengack — Principal and Founder, Hub Entertainment Research
David Tice — Senior Consultant, Hub Entertainment Research
11:20 – 11:45am
Panel Discussion: Changing Viewing and Media Landscape
Brian Fuhrer — SVP, Product Strategy & Thought Leadership, Nielsen
Paul Donato — Chief Research Officer, ARF
Vera Chien — Executive Director Global Entertainment Insights, Corporate Strategy, Warner Bros. Discovery
Jon Giegengack — Principal and Founder, Hub Entertainment Research
Monica Longoria — Head of Marketing Insights, LG Ad Solutions
Grady Miller — CMO, NRG
Moderator – Scott McDonald, Ph.D. — President & CEO, ARF
11:45am – 12:05pm
Diversity in Content and Advertising: Insights on LGBTQ+
Minority representation and diversity in content as well as in advertising and promotions are being widely debated, and there is a lack of awareness of the available research. This is particularly true of studies about LGBTQ+: during the last 12 months, half a dozen new studies have been released that shed light on attitudes about LGBTQ+ issues and representation – both among LGBTQ+ and different demographic groups. This panel will introduce these new studies and summarize key findings. A more in-depth discussion of these studies, its implications and issues for further research will take place at a breakout session in the afternoon.
Latest Studies Presented on Diversity and LGBTQ+ in Advertising
Tristan Marra — VP of Research & Reports, GLAAD
Sarah Feldman — Senior Data Journalist, Ipsos
Anna Wilgan — VP, Product Marketing, Kantar
Karen Ramspacher — SVP of Innovation and Insights, MRI-Simmons
Moderator: Janelle James — SVP, IUU, Ipsos
Lunch – 12:05-12:55pm PT
Concurrent Sessions – 1:00 – 1:55pm PT
SJR Theater / The Archive
Moderator: Paul Donato — CRO, ARF Streaming and Recorded |
Moderator: Horst Stipp, Ph.D. — EVP, Research & Innovation, ARF Recorded Only |
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| 1:00 – 1:25pm PT | Cross-Platform Video Audiences: New Insights on Viewer Segments The latest insights will be shared on viewing across TV and Digital platforms as they continue to commingle audiences and present new opportunities for advertising optimization. James Muldrow — VP of Product Management, Comscore |
Applying Out-of-Lab Biometric Measurement to Understand and Enhance TV Content and Promotions The use of biometrics collected in scale allows us not only to measure the impact of content on consumers, but also to understand which elements are leading impact, and how content can be enhanced and promoted among different audiences. Use cases will be shared where scalable biometric measurement was combined with in-depth analysis of content and context to undercover best production practices, probe the reactions of different audiences, and build and place promos effectively. Pedro Almeida, Ph.D. — CEO & Co-Founder, Mediaprobe Greg Durkin — Founder & CEO, Enact Insight |
| 1:30 – 1:55pm PT | Thriving Between the Hits: How to Make More Effective Entertainment Creative Entertainment advertising has an attention problem. In a future where content will be scarce, the stakes to deliver eyeballs, grow brand equity, and drive strong ROI has never been higher. In this session, hear why breaking away from ‘creative convention’ is a risk that can pay dividends, but only when done well. This session will explore different creative strategies and tactics that can be employed to ensure your creative – for title and brand building – goes further. Jillian Rice — VP, Creative Excellence, Ipsos Jamie Stenziano — SVP & Senior Client Officer, Media & Entertainment, Ipsos Joe Sideranko — SVP, Creative Excellence, Ipsos Kristina Fugate — SVP, Film & TV Marketing, WBD Content Sales, Warner Bros. Discovery |
Diversity in Content and Advertising: Discussion of Research Insights to Improve LGBTQ+ Representation During the earlier session, researchers introduced new studies on LGBTQ+ attitudes and representation in content and advertising. This panel will provide a forum to discuss the implications of the findings from these studies on issues such as: diversity/intersectionality among LGBTQ+, which portrayals resonate with diverse audiences and how can LGBTQ+ be portrayed in a 15 second commercial without stereotyping. Audience participation is encouraged. Tristan Marra — VP of Research & Reports, GLAAD Sarah Feldman — Senior Data Journalist, Ipsos Anna Wilgan — VP, Product Marketing, Kantar Moderator: Karen Ramspacher — SVP of Innovation and Insights, MRI-Simmons |
Afternoon Break – 2:00 – 2:15pm PT
SJR Theater – Main Stage
Afternoon Sessions – 2:15– 4:10pm PT
2:15 – 3:15pm
Measurement: Media Use and Attention Metrics
Updates on Emerging Cross-Platform Measurement Solutions
Good measurement is critical to understanding audience behavior and preferences as well as for devising successful business strategies. Hear an update on the latest developments and initiatives to improve measurement and an expert discussion about the key issues. In this context, initial findings from ARF’s project designed to explore and improve the validity of the new attention metrics will be revealed.
2:15 – 2:16pm
AFTERNOON SESSIONS: Welcome Back
Paul Donato — Chief Research Officer, ARF
2:15 – 2:40pm
Panel Discussion: New Measurement Solutions
Brian West — SVP, Data & Measurement Strategy, NBCUniversal TV & Streaming
Kavita Vazirani — EVP, Research, Insights and Analytics, Disney Entertainment Television, Networks & TV Business Operations
Radha Subramanyam, Ph.D. — President and Chief Research & Analytics Officer, CBS
Moderator: Tameka Kee — Deputy Managing Director, Coalition for Innovative Media Measurement (CIMM)
2:40 – 2:50pm
Update on the ARF Attention Measurement Validation Initiative
The ARF Attention Measurement Validation Initiative launched last year with the goal of broadening market understanding of attention measurement applied to media and advertising. Phase I of the work was primarily descriptive – charting the variety of approaches offered by vendors and considering their alignment with academic work on cognition and behavior. Phase II is in progress now – initiating a series of experiments to assess the replicability, reliability and validity of methods applied to creative testing. Phase III is still in planning – and will consider approaches applied to valuing media placements and contexts. Hear a recap of key findings to date and preview what lies ahead for the initiative.
Scott McDonald, Ph.D. — President & CEO, Advertising Research Foundation
2:50 – 3:15 pm
Panel Discussion: Attention Metrics
Duane Varan, Ph.D. — CEO, MediaScience
Pedro Almeida, Ph.D. — CEO & Co-Founder, Mediaprobe
Jeff Bander — President, eye square USA
Moderator: Scott McDonald, Ph.D. — President & CEO, ARF
3:15 – 3:40pm
Advertising Innovation and Optimization
The emergence of new media platforms has created challenges – and opportunities – for advertisers. The purpose of this session is to provide research-based insights for both advertisers and medias companies that help them innovate and optimize their ads and promotions.
New Ad Formats for OTT: Optimizing Ads in a CTV Environment
The rise of new Connected TV platforms is ushering in a range of new ad formats, each of which work in different ways, delivering to different marketing objectives. Results from almost two decades of research will be shared exploring new formats for OTT and highlighting what each format is best at delivering on. This will include insights associated with the ad choice, pause ad, PIP ad, addressable ads, and a variety of interactive ad formats. Increasingly, advertisers will optimize for OTT by buying the format that best delivers to their specific marketing objectives.
Duane Varan, Ph.D. — CEO, MediaScience
Justin Fromm — Head of Insights, Samsung Ads
3:40 – 4:05pm
Future Panel: Predictions for 2024 and Beyond
Hear predictions from panel experts about trends that will emerge within the next year and beyond based on research insights presented today.
Natasha Hritzuk — VP Global Entertainment Insights, Corporate Strategy, Warner Bros. Discovery
Radha Subramanyam, Ph.D. — President and Chief Research & Analytics Officer, CBS
Laura Martin, CFA & CMT — Senior Media and Internet Analyst, Needham & Company
Mike Bloxham — EVP, Global Media, Entertainment and Games / Co-Lead, Subscriber Science, Magid
Moderator: Andrew Wallenstein — President & Chief Media Analyst, Variety Intelligence Platform (VIP+)
4:05 – 4:10pm
Closing Remarks
Paul Donato — Chief Research Officer, ARF