Samsung Ads Optimizes Streaming Buys, Preps 4 New FAST Channels

Samsung Ads is offering a Total Media Solution to marketers trying to connect with audiences. At its Tuesday morning NewFronts presentation in New York, Samsung Electronics' advertising arm revealed several updates to its FAST service and showcased its recently launched Samsung Ads Total Media Solution offering, which provides buyers with management and measurement of cross-platform media buys. Samsung TV Plus, Samsung’s free, ad-supported streaming service, is now creating four new owned and operated FAST channels that will arrive on the service this year, focusing on cooking, automotive, home and holiday. The company, the No. 1 smart TV manufacturer globally for 16 years running, has access to audience insights from more than 45 million smart TVs in the U.S. alone, and the new channels were developed to deliver content to its viewers’ favorite genres. The four new channels join 19 other owned and operated channels on the platform, including dedicated channels for Kitchen Nightmares and Project Runway. “As the world’s leading smart TV manufacturer, Samsung has an unmatched ability to turn viewer insights into new content opportunities,” said Sang Kim, svp of product and marketing, Samsung Electronics, in a statement. “Beyond catering to the genres and content types we know our viewers love, these channels were also created to provide vertical-specific, brand-safe inventory for some of the most in-demand advertising market segments.” Since launching Samsung TV Plus and Samsung Ads in the mid-2010s, the company has focused on growth, which resulted in increasing Samsung TV Plus engagement by more than 50% since the first quarter of 2021. The company has a track record of making use of its insights, as Samsung’s owned and operated programming makes up eight of the top 10 most-watched channels on the free streaming service, which offers over 200 channels and thousands of video on demand shows and movies. Now, Samsung Ads will focus on innovation and data-driven ways to connect that audience with advertisers. “Gone are the days of justifying why consumers need to buy connected TV. Our goal is to provide them on how much of their media budget should be dedicated to streaming and show them how our data and products can help them buy video (linear + CTV) as a whole more efficiently and how they can work together to achieve more,” Cathy Oh, vp and global head of marketing and analytics, Samsung Ads, told Adweek over email. Optimizing streaming buys To help advertisers with audience fragmentation, Samsung Ads launched its Total Media Solution. Powered by Samsung DSP, it is a full-service offering that provides buyers with management and measurement of cross-platform media buys, inclusive of ad exposure on networks’ linear and digital streaming apps. “We are able to provide advertisers with the ability to bring-your-own media for streaming app inventory that has been negotiated directly with TV networks, to Samsung DSP, where we will manage and measure cross-platform campaigns using its programmatic ad-tech platform,” Oh said. With the Total Media Solution, Samsung Ads will fully manage streaming buys to provide agencies with optimal reach and frequency. In addition, the company reports the service will allow it to find unexposed audiences on CTV. It will also provide enhanced reporting capabilities in a single view that includes real-time ad-exposure data. “Achieving holistic measurement is one of the biggest challenges in the marketplace—possibly the biggest cause of fear, uncertainty and doubt in media buying. Agencies and advertisers need a simple way to understand and integrate linear and streaming buys to measure outcomes and increase efficiencies. With Samsung Ads Total Media Solution, we are providing an elegantly simple solution for the industry to serve ads, measure and optimize within Samsung DSP,” Joe Melaragno, head of platform sales and agency development, Samsung Ads, said in a statement. In 2021, Samsung Ads launched three ad offerings, including Discovery Masthead, to deliver masthead banners with a high impact; 1st Screen Plus, for advertiser messaging in an auto-expanded environment; and Samsung TV Plus Editorial Sponsorship, to give brands easier access to cord-cutters. Oh told Adweek that there were several key takeaways from launching the products, including recognizing a large demand from advertisers to leverage brand-safe and exclusive inventory available through OEMs, that FAST channels continue to gain momentum and that discoverability is a key factor for media and entertainment companies.