MTV Uses VOD to Tout Film Launch

NEW YORK Cable TV operator Sunflower Broadband and MTV Networks are mounting a campaign that puts interchangeable national ads in on-demand cable television.The campaign, spearheaded by WPP Group's Mediaedge:cia, touts the Sept. 22 theatrical release of Paramount Pictures' and MTV Films' Jackass: Number Two.Using technologies from SeaChange International and Atlas On Demand, Sunflower's VOD system allows ads to be switched before and during the film's engagement, delivering updated and relevant messages. Ads will run on Comedy Central On Demand. Until now, VOD ads have been affixed to a program throughout its run. With so-called dynamically inserted advertising, the days of delivering fixed creative content six weeks in advance may be numbered. Ad copy can now be sent with a lead-time of roughly a day, enabling more recently produced creative. More importantly, events taking place over the course of a campaign can be reflected in updated images and messages. "Now we can change the ad copy to say 'In Theaters Now,' when a movie has opened, instead of, 'In Theaters in September' when it's October," said Mike Bologna, senior partner, director of emerging communications, Mediaedge. "And where an offer only lasts for a week, this capability allows us to use the (VOD) medium because it allows us the flexibility to change." In the current trial with Paramount, for example, Jackass: Number Two commercials are being placed with the goal of driving users to a full-length trailer at the end of the program—and into theaters. Prior to the movie premiere, the trailer will serve as a sneak preview. Afterwards, trailer scenes will be rotated and added as the campaign progresses. Franchises especially stand to gain from the new technology. "Clients like Pizza Hut, KFC and Taco Bell have different offers every week," noted Bologna. For media planners and buyers, the development means an ability to buy VOD advertising consistent with other media, including television, radio and the Internet. "The whole idea is not to silo media anymore," said Bologna. Now marketers can receive data on a daily basis, instead of the current delay of 35 days. Patrick Knorr, general manager, Sunflower, said the on-demand and advertising technology "allows deep measurements and quick turnaround."Mediaedge executives track and control the campaign's creative assets from their desktops through the Atlas On Demand Media Console. Ads, which are instantly spliced into programming when the user requests a show, are being measured independently. And unlike the status quo, now marketers can receive data from various networks in the same format. Bologna is optimistic that the new technology can help replace what he termed "industry chaos" with standards and guidelines. "This can bring real interactivity, measurability and accountability into VOD advertising," said Carolyn Everson, senior vice president, ad sales strategy and business development, MTV. Dynamic ad insertion has the potential to monetize the VOD industry, which currently serves 20-25 million U.S. households. If the trial proves successful, VOD programming itself stands to improve, according to Scott Ferris, senior vice president and general manager, Atlas on Demand. "Up until being able to dynamically insert ads and getting measurement, VOD has not been able to present prime-time content to consumers," he said. Terri Swartz, director of advanced advertising, SeaChange International, agreed. "Not a lot of advertisers are going to fork out a lot of money . . . where ads are married to programs on a one-to-one basis for the life of the program," she said.

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MTV Uses VOD to Tout Film Launch

Laura Blum

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