During the Olympics and Euros, Yospace stitched 10 billion one-to-one targeted ads into live sports streams. Yospace’s head of marketing explains how the company got it done.
The Paris Olympics was a huge success for the companies that delivered it, including NBCU’s Peacock in the US and Discovery in Europe. Both platforms smashed live streaming records and delivered great experiences for their users. Complicit in that experience were the ads. As difficult as it is to deliver a great live-streaming experience, scaling targeted one-to-one ads to Olympic-sized audiences is equally challenging. The complexities of the programmatic ad stack make it vulnerable to sudden increases in audiences, something very common in sports. Now, most premium sports are heading to streaming, and this is a situation that will soon become the norm.
At IBC this week, I caught up with Paul Davis, Head of Marketing at Yospace, to discuss the challenges of delivering one-to-one targeted ads in premium live sports events. The company is an expert in the field and handled the live-streaming ad-stitching duties in the Olympics and European Cup for its clients throughout this summer of sport. But first:
If you want to get up-to-speed or up-to-date on the FAST market, you need to sign up for my class Getting to Grips with FAST: a Primer on Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV. It defines key terms, explains how the market grew so quickly, reveals the superpower of each of the top FAST services, and tells you where the market is headed. And I’ve just updated it to reflect the latest data and developments to Q3 2024. You’ll leave with a solid understanding of the FAST market, why it got that way, and where it is going. To get more details and sign up for the class, visit the nScreenMedia website’s research tab and look for Getting to Grips with FAST. Oh, and TVOT Connect members get free access to the updated class!
Now, on with the podcast.
Introduction to Yospace (3:00)
Colin Dixon: nScreenMedia (L) – Paul Davis: Yospace (R)
Yospace is the leader in ad insertion, specializing in server-side ad insertion technology.
Yospace stitched over 10 billion ads in the summer of sport (4:30)
Mr. Davis explains how the company was responsible for stitching 10 billion one-to-one addressable ads into live sports streams for its partners during the Olympics and Euros.
The challenges of delivering live streaming at scale (6:20)
The ad decisioning systems (ADS) are complex. Without augmentation, it cannot keep up with the demand for ads during peak viewing times. Mr. Davis explains how events on the field can dramatically alter the value of an ad break and the number of people watching it.
How prefetch works (9:30)
Prefetch is a technology pioneered by Yospace that ensures an ad is available to fill every ad avail. Mr. Davis explains how it works.
Why slates are so bad (11:10)
When the ADS fails to deliver an ad in time to fill the ad slot, a generic message—called a slate—saying something like “We’ll be right back” is normally played in its place. Slates are annoying to viewers and represent a missed revenue opportunity for providers.
Why even bigger sports audiences are coming (12:30)
The majority of NBA games will be available on streaming platforms next year. Other mainstream sports are coming, too. Massive streaming audiences for sports are becoming the norm.
