Rovi launches smart TV advertising initiative

Rovi has launched a smart TV field trial in a bid to test advertising opportunities on connected televisions.

The initiative enables companies to test campaigns across a variety of platforms, including internet-enabled TVs, Blu-Ray Players and other devices.

Companies who sign up to the programme will obtain access to campaign metrics and consumer behaviour data. Rovi estimates it will potentially receive tens of millions ad impressions during the course of the trials through the Rovi Advertising Network.

Carnival, Brightline and Brightline’s clients have all agreed to participate in the North America trial. Rovi plans to launch additional trials in the UK and Canada in the second half of this year.

“TV advertising is changing fast. In order to reach an increasingly fragmented entertainment audience, it is critical for brands to be at the leading edge of new methods for reaching consumers. We’ve created the Smart TV Field Trial programme to find new ways to engage and target consumers in the living room, test the effectiveness of campaigns and deliver value to brands – regardless of connected TV platform or device,” said Jeff Siegel, senior vice president of advertising at Rovi Corporation.

The trial programme is based on the production, delivery and measurement of campaigns within the Rovi Advertising Network, which reaches up to 30+ million homes in the US.

“The definition of television is clearly evolving as the TV has now become the home theatre, video store, games arcade and much, much more. As a result, Smart TVs now offer a more interactive, targeted, quantifiable medium for our clients,” said Sasha Savic, chief commercial officer at MPG. “In our quest for new advertising possibilities, the Rovi Smart TV Field Trial offers us a scalable way to explore this burgeoning market and understand how to exploit its potential in the future.”