MMW can now confirm that SpotX, a video advertising and monetization platform, today extended their strategic partnership with Pluto TV, the leading free OTT television service in America. As part of the renewed collaboration, SpotX will match media buyers to Pluto TV’s premium inventory and power the programmatic monetization of Pluto TV’s free, over-the-top (OTT) content.
So how does it all work?
Pluto TV offers over 100 free live channels and on-demand programming and has partnerships with TV networks, movie studios, publishers, and digital media companies. The company currently entertains millions of monthly unique users who tune-in to watch premium news, TV shows, movies, sports, live events, cartoons, and trending digital series on a free, ad-supported service.
The partnership opens up more opportunities for media buyers who have been increasingly trying to break into the OTT game. According to SpotX’s recent research report entitled, “TV is Total Video: Predicting OTT and the Future of Video Advertising,”
Conducted by S&P Global Market Intelligence’s Kagan, 67 percent of advertisers expect to spend between 21 and 40 percent of their ad dollars on OTT platforms within the next 24 months. SpotX’s Demand Facilitation services will bring a diverse group of buyers to Pluto TV including auto, retail, CPG, and entertainment, adding more variety on Pluto TV, enhancing the viewer experience, and enabling more advertisers to reach untapped OTT audiences.
In recent months, Pluto TV has been heavily focused on its advertising technology stack, which employs server-side ad insertion (SSAI) technology to combine content and ads into a single video stream that can be easily distributed across all devices and platforms.
We’re told that Pluto TV also runs dynamically-generated videos that promote upcoming content by automatically pulling clips and programming information together into promotional spots that run on-air, driving viewership. Its ad platform integrates with any industry-standard (VAST) ad-serving system without any additional customizations.
“As viewership continues to grow in OTT, many advertisers are unsure about what to buy in the space, or how to effectively buy it,” said Mike Shehan, co-founder and CEO at SpotX. “Pluto TV offers a seamless, TV-like viewer experience, and we’re excited to help create a more powerful offering by connecting advertisers with their inventory.”
