Please fill in your details below to access this file

    Feedback is good but facts are better

    By Kim Portrate, CEO of ThinkTV
    Published AdNews

    Australia’s broadcasters are far from “shortsighted” and missing an opportunity to unite, says ThinkTV’s Kim Portrate. Here she replies to comments about the free-to-air networks last week by Initiative global CEO Mat Baxter.

    I love it when Aussie talent makes it big overseas and so it was a pleasure to welcome Mat Baxter back to our shores last week. His impassioned call for the TV industry to work together was music to my ears and as much as I love a good tune, it did feel like the song was a little more 2015 than 2019.

    Last week, Mat called out Australia’s broadcasters as being “shortsighted” and having missed an opportunity to unite for the good of all players across our industry. While I agree that the industry needs to continually to evolve, and in some areas, there is still much work to be done, the process is actually well under way.

    Feedback is a gift, especially when it provides an opportunity to reflect on where you have been, where you are now and most importantly, where you’re headed.

    The TV industry is dynamic and no-one has the luxury of resting on their single, or collective, laurels. Recognising this, the broadcasters banded together to launch ThinkTV in 2016 in order to better serve agency and advertising clients and the industry itself. That’s just after Mat headed off to New York and it was the start of three years of pretty significant change in the way Australian broadcasters work together on issues of common interest.

    Since then, the industry has worked as a collective to empirically show the power and effectiveness of TV when building brands and businesses. A joint focus on video advertising has shown TV and Broadcaster Video on Demand (BVOD), both vital parts of the total TV platform, are superior to social video. To reframe Mat’s analogy, TV versus YouTube is a little more David versus Goliath than Titanic and an iceberg.

    What’s more, TV – the collective Australian “David” – has worked to ensure our entire industry has free and unlimited access to independent, verified research that demonstrates what it can do. This information has been made available at more than 17 events, in more than 14,000 bespoke publications and across 85 communications programs.

    So that’s where we’ve been but it’s probably more interesting to reflect on where we are headed.

    We agree with Mat that data is a core component in the competitive arsenal of modern marketers, their agency partners and media owners. It is critical this data is transparently sourced and independently measurable to ensure it’s a reliable tool to use when planning marketing and media investment. This is the reason the TV industry came together in 2017 to develop Virtual Australia, a complete data solution that will deliver reliable, single source, independently measured data that can be used by both advertisers and agencies.

    The pending launch of Virtual Australia or VOZ will show the TV Australians are watching irrespective of when, where or on what device, from the TV in the living room to the mobile in their hand. It will report the total, de-duplicated audience for a program making cross-screen reach and frequency a reality – a world first.

    VOZ is currently in the final stages of development with thanks to OzTAM and Nielsen so Mat’s point about speed to market being critical is something we completely agree with.

    Once launched, VOZ will have the capability to provide target audience marketing at scale. Clients can use this transparent and independently measured data to speak to the same audience across every broadcaster because the data and the audience segments it delivers are developed by all of them for the benefit of advertisers and agencies.

    Data, research, events and joint campaigns are the factual evidence that shows how collaborative the Australian broadcasters are but even more than that, the biggest single thing all TV broadcasters agree on is the importance of the viewer.

    It’s unanimous. The fact that almost 19 million viewers tune in every week to watch their special show is a song that plays over and over in Australia and it’s a tune that never gets old.

     

    Share this article

    More like this

    TV offers a beacon of stability in a time of technological turbulence

    News / Articles of Interest / 25th Jun 2024

    TV offers a beacon of stability in a time of technological turbulence

    By Kim Portrate, ThinkTV Published Mediaweek Between impending privacy changes, the deprecation of cookies and the impact of AI, digital advertising is heading into a future more unpredictable than ever […]

    OMD’s Sian Whitnall & Baiada CMO Yash Gandhi share insights & inspiration with future media leaders

    News / Articles of Interest / 20th Mar 2024

    OMD’s Sian Whitnall & Baiada CMO Yash Gandhi share insights & inspiration with future media leaders

    By Sofia Geraghty, B&T Published Mediaweek The finalists for the Media Planner/Buyer Award at B&T’s 30 Under 30 extravaganza gathered in Sydney last week to hear insights, inspiration and personal […]

    Does investing in OOH at the expense of TV make campaigns less effective?

    News / Articles of Interest / 28th Feb 2024

    Does investing in OOH at the expense of TV make campaigns less effective?

    By Kim Portrate, ThinkTV Published Mediaweek Before you start switching up channel investment in your media mix, make sure you have all the facts. If not, you could be jeopardising […]

    This year, building trust means building profit

    News / Articles of Interest / 22nd Feb 2024

    This year, building trust means building profit

    By Kim Portrate, ThinkTV Published AdNews In the coming 12 months, businesses will have to battle the twin challenges of declining consumer confidence and a lack of trust in the […]

    Australian stories help to forge a lasting connection with TV audiences in 2024

    News / Articles of Interest / 31st Jan 2024

    Australian stories help to forge a lasting connection with TV audiences in 2024

    Published Mediaweek Australia’s broadcasters play an important role in society. From the news that keeps viewers informed to the programs we choose for entertainment and escape. Local stories matter to […]

    Perspective: The year TV brought Australians together

    News / Articles of Interest / 10th Nov 2023

    Perspective: The year TV brought Australians together

    By Kim Portrate, ThinkTV Published AdNews It’s been a big year for TV bringing Australians together for cultural moments that had everyone talking and smashing audience viewer numbers as a […]

    If 20+ million viewers is a ‘problem’, I’ll take it

    News / Articles of Interest / 13th Oct 2023

    If 20+ million viewers is a ‘problem’, I’ll take it

    By Danielle McWilliam, ThinkTV Published Mediaweek It’s rare that a week passes where there isn’t a headline proclaiming TV has a “problem”. The thing is, I think someone forgot to […]

    TV or YouTube: Which platform is best for short- and long-term business results?

    News / Articles of Interest / 8th Jun 2023

    TV or YouTube: Which platform is best for short- and long-term business results?

    Published AdNews Watching YouTube’s ‘The Long and The Short of It’ leaves the viewer with the impression the only way for brands to achieve short- and long-term business results is […]

    CMOs share Effie Award-winning work via ThinkTV campaign

    News / Articles of Interest / 7th Jun 2023

    CMOs share Effie Award-winning work via ThinkTV campaign

    Published AdNews ThinkTV has revealed a campaign featuring the stories behind some of Australia’s most successful advertising campaigns. The campaign sees marketers Brent Smart, Mim Haysom, Simon Cheng and Mark […]

    Suncorp’s Mim Haysom on the evolution of TV in the campaign mix

    News / Articles of Interest / 6th Jun 2023

    Suncorp’s Mim Haysom on the evolution of TV in the campaign mix

    By James Manning Published Mediaweek It’s television, but not as you know it, according to Mim Haysom, EGM Brand & Marketing at Suncorp Group. The celebrated marketing boss said the […]