By Michaela Gordoni
Disney has a new strategy to get more money: expanding its ad tech platform to the Middle East and Europe.
“Foundationally, our audience graph that we’ve now expanded globally is really the underpinning for everything that we’re doing,” said Dana McGraw, Disney senior vice president of data and measurement science.
The ad tech platform will expand on a market-by-market basis, per Axios.
The company has also changed the platform so that advertisers can simultaneously buy ad inventory for all live events on Disney+, Hulu and ESPN+ on the ad tech platform. Advertisers can also bid to buy ads in real-time for live programming.
“We have the largest kind of sports portfolio, right? So it’s a natural thing for us to want to invest in,” said Jamie Power, Disney senior vice president of addressable sales. “We’re making sure that the technology is keeping up with where the audiences are going. That way, our advertisers are able to connect with audiences in real time.”
“This is a significant advancement in our ad technology,” said Amy Lehman, Disney senior vice president of ad platforms. “Disney is not only making valuable live ad inventory available to advertisers, but also enabling automated workflows to simplify access for buyers.”
At the beginning of the year, Disney announced its streaming platforms have approximately 157 million monthly active users on its ad-supported plans across the globe.
It seems Disney is looking for ways to make it easier for advertisers to buy deals. In Latin America, Disney allows advertisers to buy automated deals through Google’s ad tech, using a tech firm called Magnite.
Related: Accessing ESPN on Disney Is Getting a Whole Lot Easier
Tech in Asia assessed that the new advancements in Disney’s ad tech are part of an ongoing transformation that began in 2019, four years before Disney acquired Hulu.
Disney is keeping up with Netflix, as the streamer plans to launch its ad tech deal in several countries later this year. Netflix and Disney are expected to reach $1.1 billion in ad revenue each this year. This is a sign that the companies are saturated. Having exhausted subscription efforts, they’re now turning to ads to boost revenue.
Europe is an ideal market for advertising. Almost half of European marketers plan to increase spending on streaming TV and connected TV.
There is a downside, though. Regulations are tighter in Europe than in other regions. It presents a challenge when it comes to consumer privacy, but it seems Disney is ready to jump over that hurdle.
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