Blockgraph, VideoAmp partner to tie TV ads to sales data
Illustration by Dave Cole / Getty / The Current
Television is in its “outcomes” era.
No longer solely focused on reach, TV is defined by its measurable impact, according to Blockgraph CEO Jason Manningham. As advertisers demand proof that their campaigns drive real business outcomes, the industry is evolving to meet those expectations.
To that end, Blockgraph is integrating its identity and data collaboration platform with VideoAmp, a leader in video measurement. The partnership will allow advertisers to connect viewing data across traditional TV and connected TV (CTV) with sales data, creating a clearer picture of how their ads are leading to purchases.
The partnership, first shared with The Current as the TV industry gears up for upfronts season, could offer brands new tools to optimize their media buys. A focus on outcome-based advertising means streaming platforms increasingly look for ways to tie ad exposure to real-world sales. This is especially true as major players like Amazon continue to grow their share of CTV ad spend.
“As Amazon becomes a bigger part of CTV ad spend, advertisers will become more focused on tying CTV ads to sales,” says Emarketer Senior Analyst Ross Benes. “Data partnerships will help streaming services get closer to that goal, or at least give the appearance they are getting closer to it.”
Such data collaborations could transform the future of television, according to Manningham. Blockgraph, co-owned by Comcast’s NBCUniversal, Charter and Paramount, aims to merge data and identity to drive better performance for campaigns.
“TV is now consumed multi-platform, and at the same time is increasingly being looked at as a full-funnel marketing vehicle now that it has more addressable capabilities, data [and] identity than ever before,” Manningham tells The Current. “Being able to merge those two things makes it not just good at efficient reach, but also at being able to drive outcomes.”
The integration will essentially unify VideoAmp’s viewership data and brands’ first-party data, which can then be matched to Blockgraph’s universal household ID across connected devices and even traditional TV. Blockgraph is integrated with Unified ID 2.0 to activate first-party data. In other words, it will be easier to unify these sources of data to track ads to purchases. Understanding those details in real-time is crucial to optimizing campaigns on the fly, Manningham says.
The deal follows a growing trend of collaborations that highlight the critical role of data in the CTV advertising space. Last year, EDO and VIZIO partnered for a similar deal to leverage behavioral signals, such as website visits, to help brands and agencies optimize their campaigns based on consumer engagement. Likewise, in 2024, iSpot.TV and Roku launched a data collaboration partnership granting each other access to cross-platform audience data. Roku recently also partnered with software company Incrmntal to give advertisers a clearer view of CTV performance.
This ability to understand video audiences and outcomes streamlines large-scale planning, according to Aleck Schleider, Blockgraph’s chief revenue officer, making it more efficient and cost effective. This is the essence of data collaboration — breaking down silos to enable full end-to-end measurement.
“The shift to outcomes-based measurement will force TV networks, streaming platforms, and advertisers alike to rethink how they plan, buy, and optimize media,” Vlad Strelsov, head of revenue at Attain, tells The Current. “The TV providers who embrace real-world accountability will thrive given rapidly evolving buyer needs.”
TV’s new channel
With networks and brands prepping for the fast-approaching upfronts, advertisers are keen to adopt new identity solutions across their TV deals. In fact, the evolution of the upfronts perfectly illustrates TV’s maturation into a performance-driven medium. Networks like A&E and AMC are now guaranteeing business outcomes as part of their upfronts pitches. VAB president Sean Cunningham told The Current last year that he expected a record level of upfront conversations centered on end-to-end conversion.
“Simply put – data collaboration is the engine powering much of CTV advertising’s meteoric growth,” Joel Cox, co-founder and EVP of innovation and strategy at media agency Strategus, tells The Current.
Even the traditional standard-bearer for audience-based measurement, Nielsen, is evolving by integrating streaming data with its established panel measurement. So far, VideoAmp rival Comscore has adopted Blockgraph’s identity solution, along with measurement players like Innovid, Datavant, Madhive, Kantar and Cadent.