Volume #4 - ADsorption and the Long Tail of the Dragon

With a new series of the fiery hit drama House of the Dragon returning to our screens, Sky Media’s Investment Director Ruth Cartwright looks at moving beyond attention metrics and why not all Video on Demand (VOD) is equal when it comes to creating lasting impact.

You just have to look at the recent Thinkbox research around profitability to be reminded (once again) of the scale, reach and impact of TV advertising. But with so much choice, how can marketers optimise their investments, avoid questionable data, improve safety and measurability, as well as identify the moments that matter?

With so many options, buzzwords and acronyms out there (CTV, FAST, AVOD etc), it’s not easy to know where best to put your media money. We know viewers watch in different ways and that VOD in all its forms is an important part of today’s mix (especially for certain content types and audiences). With BARB capturing more of the new players, it shows us (to the surprise of many) that linear and Broadcaster Video On Demand (BVOD) still account for a whopping 80% of TV set viewing. For the first quarter of 2024, all Subscription Video on Demand (SVOD) content provided less than 5% unique reach, and this reduces further if you look at ad-tier viewing. Thinkbox’s latest trends in TV also highlighted that the emerging Advertising-Based Video on Demand (AVOD) players – Samsung, Rakuten, Roku – while big in the States - are yet to make a meaningful impact in the UK, accounting for less than 0.1% of total TV viewing time.

Long Tail of the Dragon

So, about those dragons. If you haven’t got BVOD as part of your mix you're missing out, particularly around premium drama. For context, 78% of Sky Atlantic’s viewing comes from VOD, whereas by contrast News and Sports are 99% live. A few recent other examples:

? Oppenheimer and Barbie 63% VOD

? Ted 58% VOD

? True Detective (Season 4) 46% VOD (compared to 9% for season 1 – 2014)

What’s interesting for True Detective is that in the two weeks following the season 4 premiere, half a million people went back to watch, or rewatch, the first season episode 1, which was initially broadcast a decade ago. This reappraisal effect extends to other channels like Channel 5, where dramas like Cuckoo or Coma see renewed interest, prompting viewers to seek out similar content.

House of the Dragon (returning 17th June) has caused similar bumps in Game of Thrones viewing, but the long tail of House of the Dragon makes for compelling reading and consideration for marketers. The 2am US simulcast of House of the Dragon series 1, earned average viewing of just under 500,000. If you then take same-day showings (9pm) and on demand total reach rises to 1.4 million. Extending that to the first seven days viewing increases to 3.3 million. Critical acclaim and talkability drove extra viewing by an additional 1.1 million people over the next three weeks giving a total audience of 4.4 million. So far so good.

Thanks to enhanced industry measurement, we can now track BVOD viewership for an even longer window. House of the Dragon serves as a prime example – even 500 days after its premiere, the audience has grown by nearly another million, bringing the total audience to an impressive 5.3 million. This long-tail effect bodes well for the upcoming season launch and beyond. For marketers, this highlights the enduring value of premium, professionally produced content readily available on BVOD platforms. This extended and dynamic viewership window translates into long-term brand engagement opportunities. Viewers can revisit content and discover new favourites at their convenience and this sustained engagement creates a valuable, brand-enhancing environment for advertisers.

From Attention to ‘ADsorption’

Attention has been somewhat the metric of the moment and it's massively important as this is where TV excels. Watching high-quality content on a bigger screen drives a significant uplift in attention, talkability and business measures. According to the latest study by Thinkbox:

? The right in-home context increases ad recall by up to 6.3 times, while high-quality, professionally-made content drives 60% higher ad recall than non-professional content

? People are 44% more likely to trust advertising seen within professional content

? TV screens drive the highest recall: 34% more than on a computer, 60% more than tablets or smartphones

TV is already known for having the highest attention rates (eyes on screen) and generating the most profit – but what about the emotional connection with viewers? What about how absorbed and immersed you are in that content - what impact does that have and how can advertisers harness it?

We’re in the final stages of our biggest-ever Sky Media study into video content, mood states and levels of absorption. In June, we’ll be releasing ‘The Age of ADsorption’ study and our new proprietary ‘ADsorption Index’. This unique metric goes beyond attention with key components like emotional involvement with the content, if it’s watched all the way through and memorability. We’ve been able to identify a range of absorption moments to tap into and in one example we can see BVOD drives 42% higher absorption scores for programmes that viewers are passionate about.

This will help advertisers create stronger connections between audiences and their messages and deliver a greater brand impact and more effective use of budgets.

The shift in focus from attention to absorption signifies a new era for video content measurement. So whether it’s edge-of-your-seat sport, or on-demand dragons – where and when you say it counts, and creating connections that matter, matters.

Join us on the 26th to find out more...