Digital Signage Firm UPshow Raises $14 Million, Counts Tobaccowala Among Its Investors https://ift.tt/2S7lGMh UPshow, the start-up digital signage company that helps brick-and-mortar retailers engage their customers and employees more effectively, has just raised another $14 million in funding. Separate from institutional investors, the Chicago-based firm, founded in 2015, has the backing of so-called “angel” investors including Rishad Tobaccowala, the long-time Publicis Groupe media executive who remains a strategic adviser to the holding company. UPshow has created a proprietary tech platform that connects in-store TV screens and mobile devices. The cloud-based software lets retailers offer content, prompts and offers tailored to time of day and location, pre-set or dynamically controlled down to the individual screen level. It also provides analytics for ROI reporting. The platform now reaches customers and employees through more than 25,000 screens via customers such as Wendy’s, Rite-Aid, Crunch Fitness, UFC Gyms, Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen, Buffalo Wild Wings, Dave and Busters, among others. advertisement advertisement Tobaccowala, who made headlines earlier this week, had this to say about his investment in the firm: “Brick-and-mortar brands have been woefully unprepared to compete with the attention-grabbing digital platforms that customers and employees use inside their venues, and their businesses suffer because of it.” As digital experiences continue to be more compelling with enhanced mobile devices, wearables and other new technologies, he added, “brick-and-mortar brands need an offering like UPshow to create in-venue experiences that capture the attention of their customers and employees in ways that create measurable, hard ROI. UPshow’s rapid growth is proof that they are solving that unmet need.” The round of venture capital funding that raised the $14 million was led by 4490 Ventures. The company’s managing director, Dave Malven, said UPshow’s offering “puts the control and attention [of the in-store customer experience]back to its rightful owner, the brick-and-mortar brand itself.” As opposed to a bevy of “non-friendlies” like Google and Amazon that have increasingly gained control over those experiences over time, added Malven. Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH September 29, 2020 at 05:17PM
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Microsoft, Integral Ad Science Partnership Provides Brand Safety Verification https://ift.tt/2S6MZ9v Microsoft Advertising has announced an integration with Integral Ad Science (IAS) to protect advertisers from unnecessary risks. This partnership initially will roll out in the U.S. Other markets will follow. Here’s how it works. The IAS will scan, evaluate and rate page risks across the Microsoft's network for native ads. Risk will be assigned based on the IAS standards for content categories including Adult, Alcohol, Gambling, Hate Speech, Illegal Downloads, Illegal Drugs, Offensive Language and Controversial Content, and Violence. When the page content is deemed moderate or high risk, IAS will eliminate it from Microsoft Audience Network’s advertising inventory. It's all about helping brands reduce risk by adding a layer of protection automatically across the Microsoft Audience Network. Through this pre-bid integration, only validated inventory from IAS will be served on the network. The network of native ad placements are curated through reviews — human and artificial intelligence. The placements are on Microsoft owned-and-operated sites like MSN, Outlook.com and Microsoft Edge, and on select premium partner properties. advertisement advertisement Advertisers can target ads using data from the Microsoft audience graph, including LinkedIn data. IAS began working with the LinkedIn Audience Network in May 2020 to provide brand safety for all native ads across desktop, mobile web, and in apps. The integration uses IAS’s predictive technology and real-time data to ensure all campaigns running through the LinkedIn Audience Network are brand safe and fraud free. Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH September 29, 2020 at 01:39PM Tastemade Launches Spanish-Language Streaming Channel https://ift.tt/2Hxljs7 Tastemade has launched a Spanish-language, lifestyle streaming channel for television, the first of its category to be made available on The Roku Channel. The free, ad-supported Tastemade en Español is now available on the Roku platform, and will also be on VIZIO SmartCast and XUMO in the coming weeks. Though the Tastemade en Español brand has existed since 2016 on social channels, this is the company’s first Spanish-language streaming TV channel. Tastemade en Español’s existing content will now be available on the new channel, such as food and travel series “ArgenMex,” “Cook & Laucha 2X1” and “Patagonia Viva,” and the documentary “Fuego,” featuring Argentine chef and influencer, Luciano ¨Laucha¨ Luchetti. Popular Tastemade series in English with Spanish subtitles will also be on the channel. More programming will launch down the line. advertisement advertisement The debut of the streaming TV channel coincides with National Hispanic Heritage Month. Launching first in the U.S., the channel will come to Latin America later this year. “Tastemade is delighted to serve our Spanish-speaking audience in the U.S. with premium programming in their local language,” stated Celia Kakitani, head of LATAM, sales and brand partnerships at Tastemade. “We have received an overwhelming response from partners about the launch, and look forward to working with them to bring high-quality content to viewers at home.” Tastemade says it has a global audience of more than 300 million monthly viewers across digital, mobile and streaming television platforms. It streams over 2.5 billion views each month. Earlier this month, Tastemadepremiered its first branded home show for TV, in partnership with Realtor.com, on its own 24/7 streaming network. Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH September 29, 2020 at 01:14PM New Solution Enables Retargeting pDOOH Ad Viewers At Home, On CTV https://ift.tt/2EH2TUK A new solution from programmatic digital out-of-home (pDOOH) advertising platform Accretive Media enables sequential messaging between pDOOH and connected TV, letting brands readily retarget consumers in their homes on their TVs after they’ve been exposed to outdoor ads, according to the company. Accretive claims to be the first solution on the market to pair pDOOH and CTV in this way. With the solution, called Accretive Connect, a brand defines which consumers it wants to reach, at which of Accretive’s 240,000 U.S. screen locations. Accretive can identify/collect device IDs for targeted consumers who were in the “view shed” of the screen at the same time the brand’s ad was displayed. The technology uses mobile location data (SDK) only. The device IDs are then translated into anonymized digital identities using Accretive’s device graph, and those consumers’ associated CTVs are targeted across name-brand apps. advertisement advertisement The solution “will allow brands to intelligently display their message across big, beautiful DOOH screens and then use format sequencing to amplify that same message to those same consumers with sight, sound and motion in the comfort of their homes on another large, emotive screen — the connected television,” said Accretive CEO and founder Craig Benner. Users of the solution will have access to the company's reporting suite, including analytics related to web traffic, online/offline sales, foot traffic, brand studies. eMarketer projects that in 2020, U.S. pDOOH will more than double year over year, to total $181.6 million—though it will still account for just 2.2% of total U.S. OOH ad spending. The pDOOH spend total is expected to reach $533.8 million by 2022. eMarketer’s U.S. CTV ad spending projection — made in January 2020, prior to the growth spurt driven by shelter-at-home — was for this segment to reach $10.81 billion by 2021, up from close to $7 billion in 2019.
Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH September 29, 2020 at 10:09AM
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Peacock Premium Plus Adds Offline Downloads https://ift.tt/3jfdwx4 The Premium Plus version of NBCUniversal’s new streaming service, Peacock, has started offering downloads for offline viewing. The ad-free premium version costs $9.99 per month or $4.99 per month for Comcast and Cox subscribers. Those on Peacock’s free, ad-supported plan can try the new feature by signing up for a seven-day free trial of Premium Plus. The offline downloads capability, which is available to both Android and iOS users, had been pending since Peacock’s national launch in July, but went live on Monday (September 28), according to The Streamable, which first spotted the feature launch. Hulu and CBS All Access also make offline access available only through their paid ad-free versions, although Quibi does include it in its ad-supported offering. advertisement advertisement Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH September 29, 2020 at 08:20AM Discovery, Magnite Extend Relationship To Streaming In Overseas Markets https://ift.tt/2G2UMTo Discovery, which has been working with the Magnite sell-side advertising platform in the United States, has also tapped Magnite to support its dplay streaming service in the U.K., Japan and India. Magnite, which does not own any media, was the name adopted this past spring after connected TV specialist Telaria merged with scaled programmatic exchange Rubicon Project. The company’s advertising platform lets publishers monetize across all auction types and formats, including CTV, desktop display, video, audio and mobile, Discovery said the platform provides it with control and efficiency for ad podding, inventory hierarchy, targeting, and real-time reporting. Magnite will develop custom solutions to support Discovery’s product range and roadmap, as well as auction capabilities, like bidding, in a private environment. This will result “in more choice and control in the hands of advertisers and gives audiences the best viewing experience possible,” according to Discovery. advertisement advertisement Discovery will also employ Magnite’s real-time data feeds and activity reports to enable diagnostics and measurement across its inventory. Using the power of programmatic, this collaboration will help Discovery bring its inventory to a greater number of advertisers who are looking to reach highly engaged audiences in premium, brand-safe content environments on any screen size. Discovery plans to continue expanding its partnership with Magnite, particularly as it rolls out new direct-to-consumer services, said Alex Hodge, Discovery’s director of ad sales ad programmatic. Last week, Discovery, which is preparing to launch its own streaming video service next year, acquired ad-tech startup AdSparx, a cloud-based platform that provides server-side in-stream dynamic ad insertion and on-demand streaming. The acquisition will enable Discovery to deliver personalized and contextual ads across its global D2C offerings.
Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH September 29, 2020 at 07:39AM How to Ensure COVID Precautions Don't Hurt The Customer Experience https://ift.tt/30jrmXP Efforts to thwart the spread of COVID-19 have introduced new and creative ways to keep customers and employees safe by limiting their interactions. In fact, 48% of U.S. consumers agree that COVID precautions have introduced new and more convenient ways to buy goods and services. To maintain a strong customer experience, every organization should review their customer journey from contemplation to purchase—with an eye to both intended and unintended new touchpoints. Specifically, brands should assess customer perceptions regarding store cleanliness and compliance with mask and social distancing policies. This will help to ensure that new ways of delivering goods and services are perceived as convenient and safe. One study of U.S. consumer perceptions associated with safety precautions found people are most likely to avoid restaurants and gyms due to exposure concerns, though these are not the only businesses that can be negatively impacted. In the last 30 days, one in five U.S. consumers did not visit retail locations, healthcare providers or their bank due to concerns about overall cleanliness. advertisement advertisement To maintain high levels of customer satisfaction and loyalty, brands must also be aware of how these new or new-to-me touchpoints impact their customers’ overall experience. For example, my mother-in-law recently celebrated a milestone birthday. We eventually opted to order online with curbside pick-up and eat together at home. To minimize the amount of time it would take to retrieve the kids portion of dinner, my husband used a mobile app to order ahead from a fast-food restaurant. We used the app in hopes of avoiding the typically long, slow-moving drive-through line at this popular chain. We thought we had found a convenient way to bypass the slow line but found this was not the case when we arrived. Without specific instruction within the app, we assumed we would enter the lobby and pick up our order as we had done at similar restaurants. But the doors were locked, and there were no signs with directions on how to retrieve our order. With no other option, we entered the drive-through line. When it was finally our turn, we mentioned the pick-up order and were told to bypass window #1 and go straight to window #2. In the end, it took longer than if we had ordered at the drive-through window in the first place. Had the restaurant tested its new ordering process and associated customer touchpoints, it would likely have uncovered pain points in the process. It also follows that adjusting the process to combat those potential pitfalls would increase the likelihood of future purchases. Ultimately, brands need to be vigilant about what they can control if they are to retain existing customers and acquire new patrons in this environment. Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH September 29, 2020 at 07:28AM Mocking Trump, New Ad Quotes Him Saying, "It's A Little Like The Regular Flu" https://ift.tt/3kPWs0Y By some estimates Hispanic voters may account for 13% of the electorate in the November election and thus could be the deciding factor in the outcome. That’s why The Lincoln Project—the anti-Trump conservative group—is joining forces with a coalition of Hispanic voting rights and mobilization groups to get Hispanics to vote for Joe Biden. The LP is also out with a new Spanish-language ad condemning Trump’s handling of the COVID-19 crisis. “It’s a little like the regular flu,” Trump states in the ad. You know, the one you get a flu shot for. Boom, done. Taken care of. He’s also heard proudly stating how he’s “always wanted to play it down,” referring to COVID-19’s deadly impact. “I still like playing it down,” he adds, despite the 200,000 Americans who have died from it. The LP is collaborating with Mi Familia Vota, UnidosUS Action Fund, and Nuestro PAC in a bid to persuade Hispanics that Biden is the right choice this November. advertisement advertisement In addition to the ad, this Wednesday the four organizations are holding a virtual Town Hall they are billing as possibly the “largest bi-partisan gathering of Hispanic voices in modern politics.” The Lincoln Project Hispanic Steering Committee—including legendary Hispanic advertising and marketing mavens Lionel Sosa and Cesar Martinez-Gomariz--will be working with the aforementioned Hispanic voting organizations to lead voter outreach and mobilization efforts across the country.
Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH September 28, 2020 at 02:44PM
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Ring Car Cam Records Police 'Pull Overs'; At Home, Drone Eyes Every Room https://ift.tt/3l6R2iD Amazon is introducing several new products for its Echo and Ring lines, including the Ring Car Cam, which automatically begins recording inside a car if a driver says, “Alexa, I’m being pulled over.” It sends the video directly to the cloud. That’s fallout from “driving while Black” incident headlines, when Black and other minority drivers have claimed mistreatment when stopped by police, typically for alleged driving offenses. Nathan Ackerman, Ring’s head of mobile products, told CNET’s website Roadshow, "Traffic stops can be a time when having video is important, so that everyone remains on their best behavior. So, we developed a feature to support that.” The Car Cam, retailing for $199.99 when it hits the market in 2021, goes both ways. The camera pointed outward could detect would-be thieves or give you a glimpse of the car that hit you while you were parked. It notifies your smartphone, allowing you to activate a camera to see what’s going on. With the home security brand branching out to autos, other new products include Ring Car Alarm and Ring Car Connect. advertisement advertisement If any of that sounds revolutionary, consider what Ring’s doing back at your house. Ring’s new Always Home Cam is an indoor drone that flies around your home on a predetermined path set by the user, for security purposes. Homeowners get the chance to check out the scene throughout the house without having to have a separate camera in each place. That notion may sound bizarre, at least at first, and mighty intrusive if someone’s at home. Ring says it only records when it’s in flight. When in motion, it makes an audible sound, which Ring called “privacy you can hear.” It will be priced at $249.99 when it goes on the market, also next year. All these items will need Federal Communications Commission approval before they go on the market. The Ring and Amazon product showcase was a reminder of the approaching holiday season, along with Amazon Prime Days, reportedly Oct. 13 and 14. Amazon also featured a boatload of new Echo devices and improvements, like a new model with a digital clock, and generally better-looking, better-sounding versions of those products where Alexa lives. Some are spherical. There’s also a new version of the Echo Dot Kids edition, which can read a story to your kids. A new version of Echo Show, the visual counterpart to the audio version, now features a 10-inch HD video screen on a swivel that can now follow you around to let you keep watching what you want. It has Netflix built in, and Zoom and Skype capabilities, too. A new version of the Fire stick used with Amazon Prime will soon allow you to use your big-screen TV for video calls.. Also among the new products is Luna, a cloud-based gaming service that runs on all kinds of devices and operating systems and is fortified by the Luna game channel. The new controller connects directly to the cloud and costs $49. Given the economic wallop of game and gaming devices, it’s likely to be the best-received product launch of them all. Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH September 28, 2020 at 07:25AM
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Judge Temporarily Halts U.S. Ban Of TikTok Downloads https://ift.tt/339OsSM TikTok has received a temporary reprieve from being removed from U.S. app stores. A Trump Administration executive order had set a September 27 deadline requiring that, if TikTok’s U.S operations were not sold by that date, its app would be banned from sale in app stores. The order did not attempt to stop the continued use of TikTok by existing U.S. users. On September 26, after TikTok filed for an injunction to block the ban on downloads, Judge Carl Nichols of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ordered the Trump Administration to either delay the ban or file a written response by 2:30 p.m. September 27. On the deadline day, Judge Nichols announced that he was granting part of TikTok’s injunction request, temporarily stopping the ban on app-store downloads. The court order was sealed, so his reasons for granting the partial injunction are not public as yet. advertisement advertisement In seeking a temporary injunction, TikTok argued that the executive order is “capricious,” violates the First Amendment, and would do the company irreparable harm. It also pointed out that a judge in San Francisco recently blocked the administration from enforcing a similar ban on the messaging app WeChat. Nichols asked the parties to review his injunction decision and indicate by 11 am on Monday, September 28 whether the order can be unsealed. “We’re pleased that the court agreed with our legal arguments and issued an injunction preventing the implementation of the TikTok app ban,” TikTok said in a statement. The Commerce Department also released this statement, indicating that it will continue to “vigorously” defend the executive order: “On September 27, 2020, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia granted a nationwide preliminary injunction against the implementation of Executive Order (E.O.) 13942, limited to the Secretary of Commerce’s Identification of Prohibited Transactions with TikTok/ByteDance involving ‘any provision of services… to distribute or maintain the TikTok mobile application, constituent code, or application updates through an online mobile application store.’ The E.O. is fully consistent with the law and promotes legitimate national security interests. The Government will comply with the injunction and has taken immediate steps to do so, but intends to vigorously defend the E.O. and the Secretary’s implementation efforts from legal challenges.” After Oracle and Walmart agreed to acquire TikTok’s global operations, Trump expressed tentative approval of such a deal and extended his deadline by a week, to September 27. However, soon after the proposed deal was announced, TikTok owner ByteDance asserted that it would keep control of 80% of the newly formed TikTok entity, at least until an IPO could be implemented at an unknown date. Oracle and Walmart counter-asserted that ByteDance would have no ownership or control. Trump has since said on Fox News that he will not approve the deal unless the U.S. partners have total control. In short, for the moment, the outcome is still in limbo. Mobile Marketing via MediaPost.com: mobile https://ift.tt/2oB2PsH September 28, 2020 at 07:14AM |
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