Jenny Croswell, EVP, head of investment and agency operations, and Matt Bailey, VP of media investment and activation, at Horizon Media Canada are among the media execs in New York this week to attend some of the U.S. Upfront presentations – and provide some of their thoughts for Media in Canada.
The first-ever Netflix upfront streamed virtually this year after a last-minute cancellation of the in-person presentation, which some believe was due to the ongoing writers’ strike.
The roughly 60-minute stream opened with a sizzle reel and featured various Netflix executives drawing comparisons between the streamer’s ad and non-ad supported tiers, leaning heavily on their content and their position in the zeitgeist – relentlessly referred to as the “Netflix effect.”
Netflix, which is notoriously protective of its audience information, finally announced that there are five million active global users on the ad-supported tier and that its ad-supported membership has more than doubled since the launch in November. Close to three-quarters of these users are in the 18 to 49 demo and 25% of new subscribers choose the ad-supported tier.
Netflix went on to boast that its reach is three times greater than all its competitors combined, that all of the top 10 most-watched TV shows are on Netflix, and that four of the top 10 movies are also on the outlet.
The streamer suggested that the first steps when it came to its ad-supported launch was to get the “brilliant basics” right (like geo, age and gender targeting), and hoped it could work closely with advertisers to “build something together.” Expanded measurement partnerships were announced with Nielsen Digital Ad Ratings and EDO (measurement service), and Netflix is committed to unlocking new ad concepts like title alignment.
Netflix touted its status as the most popular streaming service with more returning series than any other. However, it also reinforced that there’s room for growth, given that as of today Netflix commands just 10% of overall TV viewing time. It asserted that growth will come from consumers who are comfortable with ads and like lower prices.
Beyond the executive talking heads, there was an interview with the Russo Brothers, who spoke about their upcoming movie Extraction 2. Several slick trailers for future Netflix releases were also showcased, including one for Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Fubar, about a CIA agent who discovers his daughter is also a secret operative of the organization. Among the others screened were The Three Body Problem (from the same people who brought Game of Thrones), a program about what it means to be human, and a mini-series based on the life of an infamous drug trafficker titled Griselda, starring Sofía Vergara.
No one really knew what to expect from Netflix in its first-ever upfront presentation but roughly six months into their ad-supported venture it’s clear that there is work to be done to effectively monetize their ad supported inventory and deliver more transparent, targeted, measurable solutions to its advertisers.
