The largest U.S. cable operator, Comcast Corp., continues to acquired advanced advertising technology companies — now with the purchase of Visible World, one of the bigger platforms and proponents of addressable TV advertising.
Comcast has agreed to purchase Visible World, a New York ad-tech firm that helps marketers tailor commercials to specific audiences and geographies.
In partnership with Visible World, the broadcast group is able to aggregate impressions across its 161 stations and automatically target specific local broadcast audiences.
Automated Spot Buying Looming On Horizon
Automated, or programmatic, systems allow agencies to purchase advertising directly online, either eliminating sales people or limiting their role. In some instances, the systems involve an auction with buyers bidding for time. Such systems are commonplace in digital media, but they had far less success in the broadcast spot market. Now, however, some station groups are seeing the possibilities. This is Part II of a four-part series. Part I on what TV stations are doing to integrate digital ad selling into their sales processes appeared Tuesday; Part III, on Thursday, will focus on improving digital sales operations; and Part IV, on Friday, will offer a case study of a successful digital sales effort and the lessons it offers for broadcasters and newspapers alike.
