Ahead of moderating a panel on 'Programmatic Video – Entering The Era of Brand Response', Vincent Flood, Video Ad News, editor, sets the scene on major broadcasters' nascent moves into the programmatic video space. 

One of the more interesting trends for 2014 so far has undoubtedly been the TV industry's moves into ad tech. The year started with BSkyB launching their long-awaited 'Sky Adsmart' product for data-driven TV advertising in January.

Then Comcast, the largest US cable operator, acquired FreeWheel back in March, and most recently a RTL Group bought a 60% stake in SpotXchange, a video SSP.

And this is in all likelihood just the beginning. It may have taken a while, but 'Big TV' has woken up to the fact that ad tech isn't just about serving ads any more. It now affects how buyers buy, how sellers sell, and even how media is produced.

So we're close to reaching a point where having a stake in ad tech has become part and parcel of being a global media business. But are these investments wise, and how are broadcasters and operators likely to fare when taking on the likes of the Google, Amazon and Facebook?

First Step into Deep Water

While all of the TV industry's acquisitions and investments have made for interesting reading, it remains to be seen how far these companies will be willing to wade into digital in order to take on the web-native competition. For example, will broadcasters and operators be willing to go beyond video and TV ad tech to build out stacks that also offer mobile and desktop display? Or perhaps even search?

While such notions might seem fanciful today, remember that operators all over the world have successfully deployed the 'triple-play' of broadband, TV and phone services - all of which are highly complex businesses in their own right -- so building out or acquiring an ad tech stack mightn't be the most daunting of prospects.

However, it's all very well investing in technology and acquiring ad tech companies. Sustaining those businesses through continued investment, growth and innovation is another matter entirely. And many take the view that technology companies are best managed by technology - not media - companies.

That said, the likes of Amazon, YouTube and Alibaba seem to be able to juggle a diverse portfolio of media and technology assets, so who's to say others won't be able to do the same? Also, at this early stage there are encouraging noises coming out of FreeWheel and SpotXchange, suggesting that - at this stage at least - their acquirers/investors appreciate the need for a hands-off approach when it comes to the technology side of things.

Future investment from the parent companies is also unlikely to be an issue, provided the will is there. While many digital folk I speak to tend to assume that the TV industry is experiencing a decline similar to what the print and music industries went through, the reality is that - at least for now - TV advertising revenues are still growing.

In fact, PriceWaterhouseCoopers predict that global TV revenue will continue to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5.5% up until 2018, while ITV's latest report found that pay TV providers added 20 million new subscribers globally over the last year.

Another myth is that the TV industry simply doesn't 'get' the Internet. While there was a time when that was at least partly true (and yes, you still meet the occasional TV dinosaur) the continued success of TV advertising has given most broadcasters and operators an extra decade or so to work out what are now sophisticated and comprehensive digital strategies.

If you detect a little digital indifference from TV executives these days, the chances are it's more to do with the fact that digital still forms a very small part of the pie when you compare it with TV*.

How Big a Role Will Data Play in the Battle for Brand Money?

If the TV industry has an Achilles heel, it's probably data, although perhaps even the data problems will prove to be surmountable. While data is the cornerstone of performance advertising, brand advertising -- the lifeblood of TV and video -- paints in much broader strokes. And this isn't because it's 'bad performance advertising'.

It's because marketers know that the fluffy stuff works and contributes to the bottom line, but just not necessarily within a 30 day cookie window. Storytelling, generating awareness and encouraging people to engage with your brand or talk about your product all contribute towards brand equity. And companies with b