The Savior of TV Advertising: AT&T to Buy Experian
About a year ago I wrote that it made sense for Experian to buy PriceGrabber. Done.
Last week I was at the Linkshare Symposium speaking on the Executive Panel titled Trend Watch 2006. I suggested that 2007 will be, or must be, the year of VOD (Video on Demand). The cable companies need to figure out how to serve ads dynamically and not have ads stitched on to each video. The cable companies are about 10 years behind the Web. The good news is that it is possible for them to catch up but we can leave it to the odds makers to predict that at this point.
IPTV to rescue TV advertising
I think that the remaining telcos (e.g. AT&T, BellSouth and Verizon) will find their way into the home entertainment center. IPTV will be their mantra. They need to defend their landline service from VOIP. They can win the TV battle from the embattled cable companies whose traditional monopolies are dwindling from new technologies.
Let’s say that IPTV can get a big enough pipe into your house to deliver the shows you want on demand. There is the problem of viewers fast forwarding over commercials (thank you, TiVo!!!) There is also the problem that TV commercials are broadcasted. Whether we notice or not, online advertising is becoming more targeted.
Online advertising is often contextual to the website you are viewing or based on your surfing habits. Take a look at your cookies and see how many of them are from banner networks. They track you whenever you land on a site in their networks.
Now, imagine that for TV. Ah, but you say that what you watch doesn’t give enough information about what you buy. You’re right.
This is why AT&T is going to acquire Experian (and the other telcos will buy the other credit bureaus). AT&T knows your address if you are a customer. Experian knows your address. Experian also knows a lot more about your financial history and can predict what you will need in your life. Experian knows your age, your marital status and if you have kids.
Talk about lifecycle marketing!
This is similar to why I thought Experian would buy PriceGrabber. It’s all about the database and using it to market more effectively to consumers. If you buy a car every seven years, why waste valuable ad time on showing you cars for 5 out of those 7 years. Get you thinking about the cars that your demographic buys in the two years before you are ready.
With the increased response rate and more effective branding to the exact markets the brand wants to reach, ad rates will begin to trend up, a reversal of recent years.
Click for more information
Not only can you click to get more information immediately mailed or e-mailed to you, your telco can then use that information in a feedback loop. It then knows what you were interested in and, for certain transactions, if you made a purchase of a product or service.
Big Brother?
Is this too much information for one company to have or is it effective marketing? What do you think?
