Netflix, European streamers turn to ad tech to win advertisers

For years, European audiences have enjoyed a rich buffet of binge-worthy TV shows — a mix of big budget content from global streamers and regional hits thanks to local investment.

Now, it’s marketers’ turn to join the buffet as streamers roll out ad tech capabilities aimed at improving media buying in the region.

Netflix announced this week it would enable programmatic ad buys in beta through The Trade Desk and Google’s DV360, expanding on its U.S. launch last August. The offering is live in the UK, Germany, France, Spain and Italy, with a global rollout planned for the coming months.

Advertisers are catching a glimpse of Netflix’s shift from “crawl” to “walk” in its ad business, as outlined by co-CEO Greg Peters in the company’s last earnings call.

Media buyers will be able to target by genre, geography, device type and the streamer’s top 10, which includes the day’s most watched titles. Brands including McDonald’s, Samsung, Zalando and Uber have already tested the offering.

“As the first to leverage this opportunity, we have unlocked new ways to reach highly engaged viewers in a premium, brand-safe environment,” says Philipp Nee, head of digital media at Zalando.

Why this matters in EMEA

While streamers usually release new ad tech capabilities in the US first, this trend arguably has more profound implications in EMEA.

In a fragmented and relatively slow-moving market where national broadcasters, commercial TV providers and streamers are battling it out for viewership and ad budgets, Netflix has spied an opportunity to lean on its digital-first pedigree in a bid to leapfrog its European competitors. It isn’t the only one: Amazon Prime Video already revamped its DSP last October.

“We’re thrilled to expand our programmatic offering in EMEA to offer more choice and flexibility for our partners,” says Damien Bernet, VP of ad sales, EMEA at Netflix. “Ahead of the launch of our own ad tech later this year, this builds on our foundation enabling us to deliver even more capabilities advertisers are looking for.”

Netflix’s new programmatic capabilities and massive viewership base in the region will likely be a draw for advertisers. Still, the continent’s homegrown streamers have not been sitting idle — and are fighting tech with tech as they go after ad budgets.

The UK’s Channel 4 will simplify and relaunch its streaming ad buying platform this year, with an eye to small and medium advertisers. In December, France’s M6 brought on RTL’s advanced ad tech capabilities through a partnership with smartclip, the latter’s ad tech arm. And earlier last year, M6 and France’s TF1 adopted EUID, giving advertisers more options to reach authenticated audiences on CTV.

Europe’s TV players may have lost ground when the streaming wars were all about content. But they are now co-writing the next chapter with the streaming giants, one where ad tech will be part of the main cast.

The Current is owned and operated by The Trade Desk.