Sky would be ‘good partner of choice’ for streamers turning to advertising models

Sky would be “a good first partner of choice” for streamers as they turn to ad-supported SVOD models as well as AVOD and FAST, according to Dev Sangani, director of strategy and capability for UK and Europe at Sky Media.

Dev Sangani

Speaking at Mediatel’s Connected TV World Summit in London today, Sangani said that the ad universe, like pay video, was fragmenting. Sky was still able to deliver mass reach and measure the results. “That is one thing the streaming companies have not yet figured out,” he said.

Sangani said Sky had “some interesting levers to play” in delivering addressable advertising at scale, through its experience with AdSmart and its wealth of subscriber data..

However, he said, it was possible that streamers might try to “go for a global deal” or to sell as space programmatically as they turn to advertising-supported models.

He said it would be “a shame” if such companies did not partner with a “TV first” company as they built out their advertising businesses.

Sangani said that personalised ads were 50% more likely to be watched and remembered, and Sky had shown with AdSmart that addressable advertising made sense.

Sangani said that direct-to-consumer providers wanted to team up with Sky because they wanted access to its huge base, which enabled them to cut down on marketing costs. It also benefited them that Sky expertise in how to bundle to achieve wide reach and reduce churn.

“It’s hugely valuable for us too because our customers want to come to one place and just turn on their TV…it’s a win-win on both sides,” he said.

Simple and easy

Sangani said that the market for pay services had hugely expanded with ‘pay lite’ models and there was still room for growth.

However, he said, fragmentation of the pay universe meant the there was huge value in making it “simple and easy” for customers, citing Sky Q and Sky Glass as ways in which Sky had catered to this.

Sangani said that Sky Glass “was a natural step” enabling it “to control the ecosystem”.

“If you look at all the complexity [facing consumers] today, we made it very simple, and made sure it didn’t cost the earth. You can get it on a subscription model, which is a big differentiator too,” he said.

Sangani said the biggest problem facing consumers and a poor consumer experience.

He said that Sky’s access to high-quality studios and production facilities had also given it a new competitive edge, and that Sky Originals had been “an incredible differentiator” for the pay operator that it would focus more on in the future.

“We are diversifying more than before into high end premium dramas,” he said.