Ahead of his ATS Paris keynote, Emmanuel Crego, ONE by AOL: video, business director, France, gives his take on some of the key market developments in the market, including his opinion on how publishers that are willing to marry technology with their traditional creative skill sets are increasingly empowered by ad tech, the folly of 'the great data giveaway' to walled garden providers, and how 'programmatic TV' is a misnomer.

Programmatic trends: a snapshot of 2015

Last year saw programmatic advertising move from the wings, and edge towards centre stage as brands, agencies, publishers and – increasingly - broadcast players started to invest time and resource into the technology. Automation and vast datasets are becoming an integral element of advertising campaigns and continue to drive change.

Nearly four months into the year, ATS Paris is an ideal opportunity to take stock and identify the five key trends that we see taking place in 2015.

Early adopter advertisers are reaping the rewards

Globally, 2014 was the year that brand advertisers and agencies started to truly embrace programmatic advertising, investing in automated systems and processes to drive efficiency and impact. (An AOL Platforms study in August showed that 50% of brands and agencies planned to increase programmatic spend in mobile and video in 2015).

These early adopters are now reaping the rewards as they become ever more acquainted with the technology and understand how best it can support their campaigns and messages. The role of data cannot be underplayed here – the vast amounts afforded by programmatic operations enable specific audiences to be targeted, thereby, driving significantly higher ROI on advertising campaigns.

As well better returns, marketers are able to simplify their buying process. Instead of managing dozens of technology systems, they can now consolidate this activity into a few core systems.

The end of the ‘brand data giveaway’

Smart brands are becoming increasingly aware of the need to own their own data, rather than let it fall into the hands of large third parties.

Walled gardens prevent brands from accessing critical information such as who saw their ad, and clicked on it. This situation cripples a brand’s ability to develop accurate campaigns in the future, as data analytics is an evolutionary process where the results of each campaign inform the next.

This, along with the additional understanding that data is applicable to the full consumer life cycle, is driving brands to get tough with their providers, with the ultimate aim to retain 100 percent ownership of their data.

The misnomer of programmatic TV

Much-discussed in 2015, programmatic TV is very different to RTB and ad exchanges in digital, making the term itself something of a misnomer.

In France, more than half of the TV space is already bought on guaranteed GRP [gross rating point] costs, which requires automated media planning. Rather than replace what already exists, programmatic platforms power automated ad decisions driven by audience data, campaign optimisation and measurable attribution. Broadcasters can now sell inventory based on audience segments that go far beyond age and gender, while advertisers can target their key sectors more accurately.

In Australia, AOL Platforms is soon to launch the media industry’s first integrated programmatic private marketplace for television with Multi Channel Network (MCN), the main media advertising company in Australia. This is a significant development, and a key market to observe; as well as being very advanced, it is similar to the French market in terms of its laws and how TV is sold.

The marriage of technology and creative

2015 is witnessing the acceptance that advertising technology and advertising creative do not occupy opposite corners of the ring. Instead of being regarded as adversaries, the power of data to inform creative that is specific to its target audience and ad placement is being recognised.

A study by AOL Platforms in October 2014 found that 49% of buyers and sellers said the ability to target and track consumers through programmatic technology was leading to new forms of creativity and storytelling in advertising.

The ‘data-driven creative’ sees creative teams use technology to engage audiences by bringing stories to life for people in a way that is relevant to them.

Power to the publisher

As premium publishers, particularly those with their remotes in print, tackle the challenge of declining revenues, they are turning to programmatic platforms with the realisation that these have much to offer.

Automation streamlines processes, thereby driving efficiencies and enabling cost-savings. Plus much more than that, data generated through programmatic operations allows publishers to put a true value on their inventory. Key audiences can be identified and segmented using sophisticated targeting. This, along with other data driven tools such as frequency capping and brand safety, makes it easier for a publisher to encourage more brands to spend through programmatic channels.

Ultimately, the biggest winners will be the publishers that make it easy for brands by planning, executing, analysing and reporting (across audiences, screens, ad formats, time of day and content types).

This is a snapshot of the market today, but a year is a long time in advertising technology; and although there can be no doubt that programmatic is becoming widely adopted, we are long way off it becoming the default setting. It will be interesting to see the observations ahead of ATS Paris 2016.

Crego will deliver a keynote address along with Alexandre Canu, head of sales, Adtech & Adtech MarketPlace, during ATS Paris this week on 22 April. Check here for more details.