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Hey there. We survived Labor Day and now it's back to work. Sports are keeping us busy. With the NFL starting up, iSpot has a new playbook full of the data marketers need to play offense with their media budgets. Ironically, the NFL threw a flag on Nielsen, which is rolling out its new Big Data + Panel ratings. And Viant explains how streaming and programmatic ad tech will help sports advertisers. We lead off with a new audience metric FanDuel Sports is pitching at media buyers. Play ball! Network working on data strategy to take advantage of growing number of streaming DTC subscribers Image courtesy of FanDuel Sports Network Last year, regional sports networks seemed to be on the brink of extinction. Now, FanDuel Sports Network–the successor to Bally Sports–is looking forward and rolling out a new metric it says gives a more accurate picture of how many fans are watching nationally at a time when advertisers are clamoring to invest their ad dollars in sports properties. Using Total Audience Delivery (TAD), a new way of keeping score that combines linear and streaming audiences, FanDuel Sports Network says it averages 1.6 million viewers on days when it televises games–a figure it claims rivals other national sports programmers. Jim Keller, who joined FanDuel Sports Network in July as executive VP of advertising and sponsorship sales, told The Measure that the business went through a lot in the last few years, with a bankruptcy, new owners and a number of teams opting to take their media rights elsewhere. “It was like a media parlor game, like, what’s going to happen to them,” he said. [READ MORE]  Viant's Jon Schulz (Photo courtesy of Viant) As streaming scores more viewers, sports are slowly but surely moving from traditional TV–broadcasting and cable–to connected TV. As a viewer, it is easy to underestimate what a difference the shift to streaming means. Games are a little harder to find and record. But some telecasts offer camera angles the viewer can select and an array of advanced stats are available. For advertisers the change is much more profound. Like many in ad tech, Viant is looking to get more involved as sports shift to streaming and commercials in live events get bought programmatically. Jon Schulz, chief marketing officer at Viant, tells The Measure, that the move of sports to streaming will create new opportunities for advertisers. One opportunity is greater access to sports inventory for a broader range of advertisers, Schulz says. Another is the ability to use data to better target ads aimed at people who watch sports. [READ MORE] With another National Football League season about to start, measurement company iSpot has released a new Ad Playbook full of data that marketers can use to set their game plans for taking advantage of the most-watched programming on TV. The NFL’s dominance is mind blowing. During the regular season and playoffs, the NFL accounted for 23.22% of all ad impressions across ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC. That’s more than two times the next most-popular programming. Selling those NFL commercials on linear channels generated $6.76 billion in ad revenue for the networks, according to iSpot. Among all household TV ad impressions in 2024, the NFL was responsible for delivering 3.28%. NFL advertisers have to be careful about where they put their ads within games. While most NFL games start with high ratings, viewers tend to flee blowouts. That creates risk when buying spots after halftime because spots are bought based on average commercial minute ratings for the whole game, but spots are actually seen by the people still tuned in. [READ MORE] It is the beginning of a new era of television as Nielsen’s Big Data + Panel becomes the methodology that Nielsen and networks use publicly to talk about how many people are watching TV. Nielsen’s previous system, relying on meters in thousands of Nielsen homes, was regularly criticized by the industry and the new system has drawn complaints as well. The Video Advertising Bureau, which represents TV networks, over the summer complained the new ratings system is accelerating the loss of linear viewers and demanded changes. Nielsen said it saw no reason to adjust its methodology and plowed ahead. The National Football League, which creates the highest-rated programming on TV, also took a pre-season swipe at Nielsen. “There are millions of viewers that we believe they are systematically undercounting,” NFL Chief Data and Analytics Officer Paul Ballew told The Wall Street Journal. As the big data system takes effect a new study by datafuelX examines the suitability of the new Big Data+Panel system for the data-driven linear campaigns it creates for clients. DatafuelX found the new Nielsen system helps enable more accurate forecasting and viewership numbers that were more stable on a week-by-week basis. [READ MORE] ALSO WORTH A LOOKEagles Soar On Instagram During NFL Offseason 30% of Shoppers Will Reduce Spending This Black Friday/Cyber Monday Viewers Want Realism--and Representation--On Screen Will Megabrands Go the Way of the Monoculture?
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