HBO Max Adds Pause and Sequential Ad Formats

A year after WarnerMedia debuted HBO Max with Ads, Warner Bros. Discovery is giving the streaming service some upgraded advertising formats. Pause ads and sequential ads are now available for HBO Max clients, and are being sold as part of this year’s upfront. While most ad-supported streaming services already have pause ads—including its sibling streamer, Discovery+, which added the format last fall, prior to April's WarnerMedia/Discovery merger—HBO Max wanted to take the time to get the offering right. “We always make sure that any products that we create are saleable and scalable in a way that allows Ryan [Gould] and the ad sales team to be able to make sure that it is operated well, easily and ultimately effectively for the advertiser,” Julian Franco, svp of product management, Warner Bros. Discovery, told Adweek. At their core, pause ads are static ads that appear on screen when a user pauses content. HBO Max’s offering aims to minimize disruption to storytelling, and comprises of an overlay on top of the content that connects creative and content. “One of the challenges we believe pause ads have had, based on our research, is this complete screen takeover,” said Franco. “We wanted to be able to do was to be able to deliver an experience that was meaningful… we want to make sure that we keep that story still up on the screen. Ultimately our bigger mission is to distribute stories and tell stories that help shape culture. We can't do that if you don't finish that episode… what we've done is we've used color and light to be able to keep that brand really close to the content? So the content never goes away.” Sequential Story allows advertisers to craft message sequencing throughout a single view of content, which is designed to give brands a place to tell a story while keeping consumers immersed in storytelling. Basically, it’s comprised of a series of ads from a single brand that tell a story across pre-roll and mid-roll, which is designed to let advertisers create a narrative. Each piece of the story will take place throughout ad breaks, and House of Max, the streamer’s in-house brand studio, can also develop custom sequential creative. “Attention is precious, and viewing consumption habits and consumer habits are fragmented,” said Gould, svp, sales and client partnerships. “We appreciate the time that our fans spend with us, and we feel very fortunate that we can bring brands into an ecosystem where they can drive a greater impact and much less time, and everyone wins.” A Brand Block upgrade HBO Max is also getting an upgrade to its Brand Block offering. That suite gave advertisers a 100% share of voice within a piece of content, gave brands a differentiated message before content playback and included short messages in traditional ad markers and spots. The newest addition includes Previews, which is a product designed to mimic the theater experience. It’s a front-loaded ad experience before movies that delivers trailer specific creative, before the film streams with no further interruptions. That offering is only available to studio and entertainment partners. The launch of new ad offerings on HBO Max follows two new ad formats for Discovery+, in partnership with Brightline. Click-to-Contact and Viewer’s Choice will both be available on Discovery+ beginning in the fourth quarter, and will be offered to clients in this year’s upfront. While Warner Bros. Discovery plans to eventually combine HBO Max and Discovery+ into a single offering, the streamers are being sold separately in the upfront. Warner Bros Discovery Wants to Be as Big as the Broadcasters in First Upfront

Streaming & OTT

HBO Max Adds Pause and Sequential Ad Formats, Updates Brand Block

The offerings are already available to clients in the upfront

Mollie Cahillane

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Mollie Cahillane