Canwest’s Global TV yesterday announced it has launched a new online video player, capable of delivering a pre-roll or mid-roll ‘on steroids,’ says Paul Burns, VP, digital media, Canwest Broadcasting.
‘We need to be advancing how those creative experiences get interpreted by the audience and I think there’s so much more you can do online,’ Burns tells MiC. ‘I think our focus has been making that pre-roll and mid-roll experience infinitely more impactful for the advertiser,’ Burns says.
The relaunch features a new, wide-screen presentation of programming and a social media toolbar at the bottom of the screen, which allows for easier sharing of clips on Facebook and Twitter. Navigation on the site is also about 10 times faster than before, geared to the speed of a visitor’s internet connection, explains Burns.
With respect to sponsorship opportunities, logo integration and branding, including a ‘presented by’ ad, can be integrated into the player, as Nivea and Telus have on the presentation of Glee for the new video player‘s launch. One feature that has not yet been executed, says Burns, is the ‘curtain,’ (or the aforementioned ‘steroid’ ad) which can take over the pre- or mid-roll in the form of a brand microsite.
The curtain allows advertisers to add to the space that was previously allotted for a 30- or 60-second video, using other branding executions like polls, contests and voting. A brand could even offer the viewer a selection of videos to watch. ‘If it’s an automotive manufacturer, a user can choose and pick from five different videos of different cars, depending on their interest and depending on their model that most suits their demographic or lifestyle,’ Burns says, as an example.
This year Global TV has seen a 370% year-over-year growth in terms of video views on the site, according to Comscore figures, with user engagement metrics (which count video views per each individual viewer) up by 215%. In fall 2009, Global had 57 million accumulated video views, with about 100 views per viewer, according to Comscore.
