The open web is on life support, or so they say. But is it really dying, or are we just not giving it the oxygen it needs to survive? 

That was the big message during Programmatic IO’s session, “The Future of the Open Internet Is…?” featuring industry minds Cavel Khan, Chief Growth Officer, Group Black; Ari Paparo, CEO & Contributor, Marketecture Media; and Ben Hovaness, Chief Media Officer, OMD, with AdExchanger’s Allison Schiff moderating.

And if we’re honest, the conversation revealed a hard truth: the open web’s struggles go beyond the cookies crumbling — the question is: Are publishers ready to hustle for their piece of the pie?

So, What Exactly Do We Mean by the Open Web These Days?

Let’s cut through the noise — everyone’s got their own take on what the “open web” even means anymore. Is it about accessibility, privacy, innovation, or free speech? It depends on who you ask. 

Some say it’s the accessible, ad-friendly corner of the internet, free from the constraints of walled gardens. The last bastion of free, accessible content that isn’t fenced off behind a paywall or login screen. The digital playground where ads can be bought programmatically without a giant tech overlord controlling every move.

But, sadly, the truth is the open web’s territory is shrinking fast, with Google, Meta, and other walled gardens gobbling up a good 80% of ad spend. 

How did we get here? It’s easy to point fingers at Big Tech, but let’s talk about the industry’s own missteps that got us here.

The Blame Game: Did We Let the Open Web Slip Away?

“The industry is partially to blame,” said Khan, laying out how publishers lost resources as ad dollars poured into walled gardens. And he’s not wrong.

The ad tech ecosystem poured money into the platforms and watched them grow, thinking it was all just market dynamics at play. Meanwhile, independent publishers lost their funding, their communities, and, eventually, their place in the game. Publishers didn’t just roll over one day and lose; they were out-resourced, outspent, and ultimately outperformed in the battle for consumer attention. 

“Independent publishers lost their ability to sustain in the marketplace. That’s why we’re seeing the decline,” he added. It wasn’t like consumers suddenly stopped caring about quality content. Publishers couldn’t maintain what they built because ad dollars flowed elsewhere. Publishers ultimately handed the power over to the walled gardens.

“The big miss on the media side was that they let go of their distribution,” said Paparo. Publishers got too comfortable, relying on third-party tech and platforms for distribution, only to realize they became too dependent on these gatekeepers. For example, news publishers, in particular, put too much faith in platforms and aggregators like Google News.

Now they’re playing catch-up, scrambling to recapture those direct consumer relationships they should’ve built from the start — trying to regain what they gave up: their audience, data, and autonomy.

Signal Loss Ain’t the Only Problem Here

But, we can’t ignore the hard reality of signal loss draining value from the ecosystem. “If you suck signal out of an ecosystem, you reduce its value,” explained Hovaness.

Apple’s cookie crackdown in Safari sent shockwaves through the industry, leading to a split in ad pricing between Safari and Chrome, with Chrome’s value only shooting up simply because it still relied on third-party cookies.

Now, with Google flirting with its own version of App Tracking Transparency in Chrome, the industry is bracing for an even bigger hit. It’s the stuff that still gives publishers sleepless nights. But here’s where the conversation often hits a wall: What now? 

Sure, contextual is part of the solution, but let’s keep it 100 — it’s not a magic bullet. As Khan noted, consumers want more than just context. They crave hyper-personalized, relevant content, and right now, the algorithms in walled gardens are fumbling that bag too. 

The missing piece? True multi-touch attribution across platforms. As Khan put it, “We need to leverage technology in a different way, one that doesn’t create a new set of winners while leaving everyone else starving.”

Programmatic advertising might be good at identifying who you are, but it’s failing at figuring out when you’re actually ready to engage. This is where the open web has a shot to differentiate itself, but it’ll take more than business-as-usual tactics.

The Creator Economy: A Blueprint for Publishers?

Here’s where we can flip the script a bit. It’s not just about surviving the ad wars against walled gardens. It’s about publishers learning to think more like creators to reclaim their power. 

The creator economy is booming — worth $250 billion in 2023 and climbing. This economy is out here thriving, projected to double to nearly $480 billion by 2027. Why? Because creators aren’t waiting for consumers to come to them — they’re meeting their audience where they are. Newsletters, podcasts, social — you name it, they’re on it. Consumers are looking to creators for content that feels real, honest, and transparent

Paparo’s excitement around tools like Substack, beehiiv, and Ghost is spot-on. Even WordPress offers tools allowing creators to monetize through commerce and ad placements. This is also where companies like Group Black, Raptive, and MediaVine are ahead of the game, helping content creators secure and optimize ad revenue.

And you know what? Publishers need to pay attention. 

Some are. Think of Architectural Digest’s AD PRO members-only community for design professionals. Or how about Vox and SB Nation launching Top Secret Base, featuring exclusive content for subscribers on Patreon?

We can even look at publishers like Ranker, leveraging first-party data and building community-driven engagement to realize a 4x boost in revenue. That’s not magic; that’s strategy.

It’s time for publishers to rethink revenue streams, diversify content formats, harness first-party data to build meaningful relationships and stop expecting users to just stumble back to their websites out of habit. Meet them on social, in their inboxes, or through niche community hubs — whatever it takes. It’s time to carve out a new space

What’s most important is that you own that relationship with your audience.

The Path Forward: Reinvent or Get Left Behind

Now, let’s be clear: the open web isn’t going to resurrect magically. We shouldn’t try to turn back the clock lamenting the loss of signals or blame the platforms for hoarding ad spend. This isn’t about nostalgia; it’s about redefining the open web for what it can be.

The future of the open web isn’t in wistful “what ifs.” It’s in publishers getting their hands dirty, owning their distribution, and thinking beyond traditional models. It means building the tech stack to capture first-party data, finding new ways to engage, and creating a user experience that doesn’t just compete — it sets the standard.

So when the panel wrapped up with words like “bright,” “diverse” and “changing” to describe the open web’s future, I couldn’t help but add my own: resilient. But these words only mean something if publishers take action. The open web will survive. But it won’t be because we sat around and complained. It’ll be because we hustled, adapted, and fought for it.

The post The Open Internet’s Future: On Life Support or Ready for a Glow-Up? appeared first on AdMonsters.

Digital advertising is becoming increasingly complex, and honestly, this won’t change for some time. While the advertising ecosystem is strategically preparing for the long haul, peak season is upon us and before you know it, summer will be gone.

With transparency and media quality at the top of publishers’ minds, it will be interesting to see how Q4 plays out. External factors such as Google’s decision to maintain third-party cookies are only further complicating things.

For brands, brand safety is a major concern, especially during election season like this one where advertisers are projected to spend over $12B on ads across all channels. With brands opting out of placing ads next to election content, or news entirely, the question arises, what do brands have to be afraid of?

At the recent AdMonsters Publisher Forum in Boston, Jana Meron, the newly appointed VP of Revenue Operations and Data at The Washington Post, challenged the conventional wisdom around news and brand safety. Speaking to a packed room of publishers and tech vendors, she questioned, “Why would you avoid reaching this audience when they’re most engaged?”

A few years ago, an IAB study found that 84% of consumers trust brands they see in the news, which highlights the importance of addressing misconceptions about news content. Yet, despite this trust, Resonate’s Fall 2024 Consumer Trends Report tells us that consumer spending is down, which is no bueno for publishers, brands, and agencies already grappling with declining ad revenue and sales.

“The challenge continues for advertisers trying to navigate trust and brand safety,” said Jonathan Neddenriep, co-founder and CTO of Postie. “This also puts pressure on the large tech platforms to double down on ad and content safety tools, something that isn’t always a popular or easy investment (see the Meta CrowdTangle shutdown, for instance.)”

So, what’s a brand to do during times like these?

I recently moderated a webinar with Neddenriep and Bethany Bollenbacher, Customer Success Senior Team Leader at Postie, where they dropped a ton of jaw-dropping gems to help brands stay afloat. If one thing is for sure, and two things are for certain, brands should definitely incorporate direct mail into their strategies. With Postie, direct mail now offers digital capabilities like real-time reporting, website re-targeting, and targeting that exceeds even digital channels. 

Here are some insights and strategies to help brands navigate holiday and election campaigns.

• Election Season: The Catalyst for Surging  Ad Rates
  During election years, the surge in political ad spending significantly impacts ad rates on major platforms like Meta and Google. The bid-based nature of these platforms intensifies competition for ad slots, driving up CPMs and CPAs. This situation is particularly challenging for ecommerce brands looking to grow during the holiday season. To navigate these fluctuations, brands should develop conservative forecasts for CPMs and explore alternative channels with more stable performance metrics. Implementing digital campaign levers like cost-capping can also help protect your budget from being drained by the rising cost of ad slots.
• Leveraging Direct Mail for Stability
  Direct mail offers a stable and predictable alternative amidst fluctuating digital ad rates. Unlike digital channels, where ad placements can be unpredictable and subject to sudden rate hikes, direct mail provides a consistent and reliable medium. Its ability to lock in rates and deliver steady results makes it an attractive option for brands looking to diversify their advertising strategies. Additionally, direct mail’s physical separation from digital noise can enhance brand safety—a key concern during politically charged periods.
  
• Develop Strong Personalization and Creative Strategies
  Personalizing direct mail is key to maximizing engagement and conversions. While basic tactics like adding a recipient’s name may have limited impact, tailoring offers relevant to the specific needs of each household can significantly boost engagement. For example, offering loyalty rewards or promoting local pickup to save on shipping can make direct mail more enticing. Additionally, tapping into the nostalgic and emotional appeal of the holiday season in your creative strategies can strengthen consumer connection and drive purchasing behavior. As Bollenbacher puts it, “Keep it warm, fuzzy, and cheesy!”
• Hone in on Your First-party Data
  First-party data remains a vital brand asset, especially as third-party data faces increasing scrutiny and regulation. By leveraging first-party data, brands can gain deeper insights into consumer behaviors and optimize their marketing efforts. Retail media networks, which capitalize on this data, are gaining traction to support both retailers’ and brands’ growth objectives. This data-driven approach enables precise targeting and personalization, enhancing overall campaign effectiveness. During a session at AdMonsters Ops titled “Retail Media In-Housing: It’s the New Wave,” speakers stressed how crowded the retail media space has become. To stand out, one strategy for RMNs is to tap into direct mail, a far less crowded medium in RMN.
• Remain Flexible to Keep up With Consumer Habits
  To run effective holiday campaigns, it’s crucial to understand and align with consumer habits. Different industries follow unique seasonal patterns, so your marketing should reflect these trends. For example, gift-giving behaviors ramp up in early Q4 while sectors like home services decline — no one wants to start a home improvement project on Thanksgiving when everyone is focused on eating. Brands can optimize their campaigns by targeting consumers at the right times and revisiting CRM strategies to encourage multiple purchases during the holiday season, boosting lifetime value.
• Understanding Publisher Concerns
  Publishers are facing a host of challenges, with transparency and diversity in advertising being especially critical for niche publishers striving to stay afloat. Media quality verification remains is also a hot topic, with industry experts debating its effectiveness. At Publisher Forum Boston, Claire Atkin from Check My Ads highlighted these issues, calling for ongoing dialogue and efficiency improvements. In this challenging environment, publishers need strong strategies to maintain and strengthen their market positions.

A Worry-free Approach to Surviving Q4

Navigating holiday campaigns during an election year requires a multifaceted approach, balancing digital and traditional channels, and better leveraging first-party data, while understanding consumer habits. 

Brands and agencies must stay agile and prepare for fluctuating ad rates while optimizing strategies to cut through the political and holiday noise. Direct mail offers a stable, effective alternative, and personalized, emotionally resonant creative strategies can drive consumer engagement. Ultimately, a well-rounded, data-driven approach will empower brands to succeed even in the most challenging advertising landscapes.

Don’t sleep on the power of direct mail. To watch the full discussion click here.

The post Deck the Halls With Votes and Direct Mail: Mastering Holiday Campaigns in an Election Year appeared first on AdMonsters.

The “COOL” Company isn’t just a name; it’s a way of being. 

The new ad tech company, formed when Insticator recently acquired ADventori, seeks to mend the fractured ecosystem. Founded on the principles of creating a better experience for everyone, their comprehensive suite of solutions is tailored for every sector. Unfortunately, dissatisfaction is everywhere you look in our industry, but the COOL company aims to change all of that.

• Advertisers are unhappy with the results and the lack of transparency in their spending. 
• Publishers are frustrated with their ad revenue and how to maximize it.
• Agencies struggle to show results and find effective d channels for their clients.
• Franchise and other network businesses are frustrated by the gap between national branding and local ad execution.
• Worst of all, users are dissatisfied with the number and quality of ads they see. 

The ad tech ecosystem is in shambles, filled with too many competing interests, technology limitations, and outdated thinking. The COOL company is tackling this by serving each audience individually while uniting their ideas and tech for a rewarding experience for everyone.

The ADventori acquisition will boost personalization and improve user and advertiser experiences. The ADventori Dynamic Creative (DCO) platform helps brands align ad placements with their specific goals, allowing them to reach consumers effectively.

According to CEO and founder Zack Dugow (C.O.O.L.) stands for:

• CREATIVE: Respecting great ideas from everyone. 
• OPTIMISTIC: Solving daunting challenges with a positive attitude. 
• OPEN MIND: Welcoming innovative concepts and diversity.
• LEADERS: Tackling industry complications head-on.

We spoke to Zack about The COOL Company’s future and their plans to bridge the gap. Here’s what he had to say.

Impact on Publishers, Advertisers, and Agencies

Yakira Young: How will the ADventori acquisition enhance your capabilities in integrating advertisers, agencies, data, and publishers?

Zack Dugow: Our SSP, Balihoo.com, and COOLmedia.co business units benefit directly from integrating the ADventori technology into the stack, along with the customer cross-sell opportunities that are already underway. ADventori works with some amazing publishers and brands, including Disney, Airfrance, Hyundai, and many others, to which we can now offer other solutions. 

When looking at other DCO solutions in market, they seem very expensive for the value they drive. ADventori has a DCO platform built to serve the right ad to the right person at the right time with the most compelling content and format. Their ads, frankly, just work better. That’s a boon for publishers who live and die by ad engagement, advertisers who just want meaningful results, brands and partners who want to know that their investments pay off, and users who just want to enjoy the web and see relevant, helpful, attractive ads. 

Everyone wins with ADventori. It helps us because it allows us to better serve our clients in all of those roles – everyone gets a better experience through more personal advertising.

Users will see the right ad, with the right content/offer, at the right time, exactly according to the branding guidelines. That helps advertisers achieve better outcomes and return on their investment, and agencies gain greater insights into what works and how to leverage dynamic messaging to serve their clients. 

They can also expect innovation across our entire business, as the DNA of ADventori mixes with that of Insticator, OKO Digital, COOL Media, and Balihoo to foster innovative new ideas. Our publishers benefit from our direct relationships with these big advertisers, and our advertisers benefit from a more direct path to the publishers they serve on as well.  

YY: How do you plan to streamline operations and improve efficiency for your partners through this integration?

ZD: The ADventori technology platform removes the need to create specific ads to suit specific variables, instead drawing off a library of content to dynamically generate just the right ad for precisely the right moment.  That will benefit our partners as we broaden the reach of this technology throughout the US, Australia and the rest of our global operations.  

This is just the tip of the iceberg. We have already identified how many of our team members can help each other cross-functionally and are implementing that cross-functional benefit. It’s early in this union, but we have some exciting ideas on how the crossover of ADventori technology into the COOL company will create amazing results for our partners.

YY: How do you plan to leverage Adventori’s technology to enhance your offerings?

ZD: Our SSP will massively benefit from being able to cut out more middlemen and serve dynamic creatives and formats. We can expand upon our growth in COOL media and Balihoo by having our own DCO solution that more directly integrates with our technology.  

The great benefit of the COOL company is that we have business units dedicated to every element of the modern advertising ecosystem. For example, Insticator has always recognized that users’ experience matters; the more you engage and allow them to participate on your site, the longer they stick around and the more they return. That engagement has to be monetized for the publisher, which (typically) happens through ads. 

ADventori ads perform better thanks to their dynamic content targeting, which makes it easier for publishers to accrue revenue. Meanwhile, franchise businesses try to deliver a consistent national message, but ads are executed/paid for on a local level. ADventori can deliver franchise ads dynamically adjusted to a specific location while reflecting the consistent national brand in a virtual instant. Those are just a few examples of how our partners across the entire spectrum benefit from ADventori integration.

Challenges and Opportunities 

YY: What challenges do you anticipate in the integration process, and how do you plan to address them?

ZD: Obviously, with the immense benefit of a global team come the challenges of time zones, different cultural norms, communication styles, and more. So, it would be naive to think that integration will be easy. However, we carefully partner with people as we build the COOL company.  

Our hires, acquisitions, partnerships, and clients are selected based on compatibility with our values. I can tell you that Pierre-Antoine, Matt, and the entire ADventori team are COOL, so I’m confident we can overcome any hurdles.

YY: What new opportunities do you foresee emerging from this acquisition for your company and the industry?

ZD: There are too many to mention, but as an example, think about what might seem like an outlier in the COOL company, namely Balihoo. Balihoo bridges the gap in franchise and brand network businesses by ensuring collaboration among the national brand and individual locations and the performance of each location in the network.  

I can see the ADventori platform being used to create a level of consistent, compelling, locally personalized, and high-performing ads for franchise networks. Or, as I mentioned before, elevate the performance of engaging users on publishers’ sites serviced by Insticator.  It’s a perfect fit, so the opportunities are limitless – and every opportunity is for the industry and our partners, which will benefit us simply by serving them better and creating that better experience for everyone.

Client and Partner Relationships

YY: How have your clients and partners reacted to the news of this acquisition?

ZD: Honestly, it’s been a pretty well-kept secret to this point, so it’s early to comment.  However, we’ve certainly socialized the ‘concept’ of adding a DCO company to our ecosystem, and the response has been overwhelmingly positive.  

Everyone gets it. Advertising connects brands to users but we as an industry execute it through agencies, publishers, and more. No party in that experience doesn’t see the benefit in more dynamic, precise, and effective ads.

YY: What steps are you taking to ensure a smooth transition and continued strong relationships with your existing clients and partners?

ZD: Simple…We won’t; we don’t, RUSH. We’re keeping all of our team members. We hope our existing clients and partners are excited about this addition, but we won’t take action until we can guarantee our ability to implement, scale, and meet the high service standards we’ve set since our inception.  

The biggest thing we’re doing is being cautious, perhaps even a bit ‘slow’; we need to make sure that we don’t bombard ADventori in a way that disrupts their relationships. We want ADventori clients to feel good about this, and that wouldn’t be served by creating a distraction that in any way impacts their experience. So, our first step is to add the resources of the COOL company to ADventori’s disposal.

Team Integration

YY: What cultural or operational changes do you anticipate, and how will you manage them?

Our entire philosophy and existing business respect differences and diversity. We already have teams positioned quite literally ‘around the globe’. We will manage this the same way we did when adopting what is now COOL Media, a company operating in Australia, 14 hours ahead of my most frequent time zone on the East Coast of the US. We respect their clocks, holidays, work/life balance, and their cultural norms. That’s all part of being COOL, decent, empathetic, and human. 

As for operational changes, we don’t want to disrupt anything that’s already working, so our focus is layering in the collaboration at first without disrupting ADventori’s (or our) operations.

Future Plans

YY: Can you share any plans for future technological advancements or innovations resulting from this acquisition?

ZD: It’s still early in our union to get specific, but we have plenty of ideas across our different business units for how the core benefits of ADventori’s advanced DCO platform can inspire innovations across our entire family of solutions. 

I can confidently say that the most profound innovations are almost certainly in areas I’m not currently thinking about. That’s the great part of a global team spanning Europe, Australia, the US, South America, and beyond. Great ideas come from collaboration without borders, and I’m incredibly excited because the ADventori team is COOL and will no doubt spawn great conversations and collaboration. Stay tuned.

YY: What are your primary focus areas for the next 12-18 months following this acquisition?

ZD: Our customers, clients, and partners. We’re big believers in the idea that if you do the right thing by those you serve, the rest takes care of itself. Our one and only focus remains on clients and partners and building the best possible experience for everyone. That may sound evasive or obtuse, but it’s the reality.  

Closing Thoughts

YY: Is there anything else you’d like to share about this acquisition or the future of The COOL Company?

ZD: We’re not done; we’re never done. No matter how many advancements we make toward creating a better experience for everyone in the advertising ecosystem, change will come. Changes in technology, economics, user preferences, etc. Our job is to stay ahead of those changes and continue to adapt. 

I just want our customers and partners to know that we are in this for the long haul and commit ourselves to adapting to serve them throughout whatever comes next. Our industry goes through a massive overhaul every two years, and the companies that win are always preparing for change. 

We hope to be the one partner that isn’t solving a single niche problem or providing a single, siloed service. We have visibility into the entire ad landscape and a dedicated business unit serving every stakeholder – which sets us apart.  

I don’t think it takes a genius to understand our mission and values.

YY: How can stakeholders stay informed about developments and progress as the integration progresses?

ZD: We are active on social media, and you’ll see more from the COOL company on LinkedIn and other platforms. We believe in meeting our partners where they want to meet, which means they engage with whichever COOL company directly intersects their role and connect across all our social, websites, blogs, and directly with their sales/account manager. 

Publishers are naturally served by Insticator and OKO, COOL Media services Agencies, Franchises by Balihoo, Advertisers by ADventori, etc. 

The post Transforming Ad Tech: An Exclusive Chat with The COOL Company’s CEO Zack Dugow appeared first on AdMonsters.

The revolution in live-streaming sports is unfolding before our eyes, disrupting the broadcast and cable industry as new media giants, including Amazon, Netflix, and YouTube, enter the field. Sports organizations are finding themselves negotiating deals with lots of layers, where specific streamers get a certain night, like Amazon while free streaming is available on Twitch and aired on local broadcast stations. 

The stakes are incredibly high as everyone figures out the rules for live-streaming sports. The NBA’s rights are valued at $75 billion over 12 years, and the NFL’s rights are worth upwards of $110 billion. The current court case against the NFL won’t just affect NFL franchise revenue, but the entire advertising and streaming ecosystem, which relies heavily on these extremely popular mass live events. 

With all of this upheaval and complexity, it seems logical for advertising to follow the same path — with digitization, fragmentation, targeting, and more. But that’s actually the opposite of what’s going to happen. Live sports events on streaming channels actually work very much like linear broadcast sports events, and both streamers and advertisers need to understand why the industry will succeed.

Streaming Can’t Change Live Sports

Streaming sports has hit a tipping point — 53% of adults stream sports at least once per month, and it now accounts for 30% of all streaming views in the US. For multi-channel media companies like NBC, striking a balance on live sports is critical to ensure they aren’t out-maneuvered by a native digital competitor.

Tech giants like Amazon, Google, Apple, and Netflix have the resources to dominate streaming sports. Unlike traditional broadcasters, they lack legacy relationships and dependencies, allowing them to operate more flexibly. Without the constraints of politics, multiplatform contracts, and outdated technology, these companies can leapfrog traditional broadcasters.

However, streaming might be upending most things about watching TV, but a lot about live sports looks a lot like linear. People can binge-watch shows, watch new movies in their living room, and access content from around the world, but sports are resistant to a lot of these elements.

The excitement of the game happening live doesn’t change much just because it’s streamed instead of broadcast — few people time shift an important game. Sure, some people might discover they love Canadian curling or Indian cricket on streaming, but most people are going to root for the same local teams that they always have, streaming or broadcast. The big games like NBA finals, the Super Bowl, and the World Series will draw huge audiences all watching at the same time.  

Premium Content Demands Premium Prices

The mass live appeal of sports means that the digital, often programmatic advertising that digital companies know and love isn’t as relevant. Amazon might have an advantage of cash and streaming technology, but their advertising savvy doesn’t come into play. It doesn’t make sense to allow a performance-oriented advertiser to bid on individual impressions during an NBA game when a brand-oriented advertiser is willing to pay premium CPMs for an entire audience – maybe even several national ad slots during a single game. 

Live sports advertising makes media companies the most money when they stick to old-school ratings-based metrics and price-based on branding at scale, not precision targeting. This means that any streaming sports rights-holder is still going to consider the UpFronts important. They’re going to want some direct premium ad sales executives. And, they’re going to need to be able to program advertising directly coded into the content, not dynamically serve it to individual households through a big complex supply chain.

The Trickle-Down Effect to All Streamed Sports

By leading with brand awareness and following with addressability on major sports events, streaming platforms create a valuable ecosystem, avoiding the race to the bottom seen in programmatic advertising. 

However, betting solely on brand advertising carrying streaming sports at the long tail is risky. The math of sports broadcasting shows that larger audiences generate greater revenue, but not every game attracts millions of fans. Mid-season baseball games for a mediocre team, college basketball, hockey, and many other popular but smaller sports streams can and should deliver a hybrid of premium brand advertising and targeted advertising. 

As all of these details get worked out, the future of live sports streaming will remain complex. Half of American households still have cable. Sports rights holders need licensing deals that cater to both groups and offer flexibility for a variety of ad-sales strategies. Converged media planning across platforms will be essential. Convergence means different things for buyers and sellers, with varying performance KPIs. Success with converged platforms requires unified sales, delivery, performance metrics, and reporting. 

Streaming will continue to grow in importance, but it won’t lead to an all-programmatic world. The ad market will resemble network TV more than walled gardens, with mergers and acquisitions likely shaping the future landscape as linear slowly fades out and streaming evolves. The convergence of live streaming and traditional advertising will define the next era of sports broadcasting.

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