WHY THIS MATTERS: Cable networks see data and lower ad loads as ways to compete in the upcoming upfront market.
As another upfront approaches, Donna Speciale, Turner's president for ad sales, is happy to hear that more programmers are picking up on themes that she's been pitching for years.
Turner was an early adopter when it came to using data to help clients target likely buyers of their products across its portfolio of networks.
It was also among the leader in talking about improving the TV consumer's experience by cutting back on commercials, first on truTV, then on original programs on TNT and TBS.
Both of those topics are likely to be big talking points during upfront discussions, if not big business drivers during negotiations with media buyers.
Already this year, Fox and NBCUniversal have made big announcements about their plans to cut commercials. Fox, which someday hopes to get down to two minutes of commercials per hour, is planning to have its Sunday shows feature commercials only in special two-spot pods. NBCU promises to cut the ad load in original primetime programming on its networks by 10%, with 20% fewer commercials during each break.
At this point, Speciale isn't exactly saying I told you so. But she does see the industry moving in the direction in which she has already tried to set up shop.
The TV Experience Matters
With regard to the NBCU and Fox announcements, Speciale said she's pleased.
I feel like finally maybe everybody in the marketplace is now realizing that the experience is obviously really important, there's a lot of choices that our viewers have, whether it's Hulu, Amazon, Netflix, all of our properties, she said. Now, I feel like everybody's realizing that in order for us to really fix this and fine-tune it, we all kind of have to do this together.
Improving the experience goes hand-in-hand with adding data to the ad-sales mix.
It's all connected, she said. It wasn't one without the other. You need every piece that we have been building and all of our capabilities.
A dash of creativity is required, as well, in commercials and branded content. We need better storytelling for the experience of the entire show, Speciale said. I think it will lift all boats.
Will Turner's boat be lifted a little higher because Speciale was a little ahead of the pack?
Turner has definitely been benefiting, she said. We've been getting our fair share across all of our networks.
What I see happening at some point in the marketplace is, and this has been happening for a while, marketers have been wanting to align to fewer partners, Speciale added. We have been leading in the marketplace and marketers want to go with partners who are going to take them to that next evolution of what our business is.
After possibly being ahead of the game, the future is here for Turner, Speciale said. And marketers can't wait any longer either. We've been seeing a lot more marketers coming into the audience space. Open AP has definitely helped that.
Open AP was set up to help advance audience buying by standardizing how clients define their target markets and by providing post-campaign analyses that show the effectiveness of data-driven campaigns.
A year after it was set up as a consortium among Turner, 21st Century Fox and Viacom, Open AP still has only three members heading into the upfront.
I'm hoping that prior to the upfront there will be some more announcements, Speciale said. Stay tuned.
Last spring's Open AP announcement came before the project was fully ready to go. But it was a tough secret to keep and it needed to get out for the marketers to realize we were very serious, Speciale said.
In the meantime, the Turner ad sales president pointed out that clients who have tried data-driven, audience-based campaigns have come back for more and increased their spending. We've increased every single year, Speciale said. Same advertisers, bigger budgets. More advertisers have come into the network and are doing it. It's been great.
Turner said clients who do audience buying are spending 25% of their total budget on audiences. The return on investment is big, an average of $5.66 for every dollar spent, representing a 122% increase over the ROI delivered by standard demo deals.
But a lot of other marketers haven't taken the leap into data and audience buying.
It's hard, Speciale said. It's not easy. It's a little complicated. And there's a lot of training, which is what we've been focusing on.
Internally, many clients have procurement people who need to compare next year's plan with the current plan. If there's no history on data-driven advertising, it is hard to get it approved.
You only need to do it once. Once you do it, they you have history. Then you can start comparing it. And don't forget: Everybody has renewed. So, for everybody who has been dipping their toe in, it's not even experimental anymore. Now they're using it.
Data helps TV compete against digital and TV has to press its advantages at a time when Facebook and Google are being questioned by advertisers.
During its upfront, Turner will again focus on the concept of fans.
What is true is that our fans want this content no matter where it is, no matter what screen it's on, Speciale said. And I think everybody knows that. So if you're watching Conan, and you want to watch it online, you watch it online. If you're seeing clips on YouTube, you're seeing clips on YouTube. It's happening. The behavior of the viewer and the consumer is definitely on all screens. We just all have to figure out, especially for media companies how do I get paid for it?
Searching For a Metric
They can't get paid on it based on Nielsen ratings. We should
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
19/03/2026
Berklee Popular Music Institute's 24th Showcase Channels '80s Prom Nosta...
19/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
19/03/2026
How Chris Bolte Builds the Sound of PlayStation Games Chris Bolte '16 is a technical sound designer at Sucker Punch Productions, where he helps create the...
19/03/2026
Other Voices presents a legendary night of music as Foo Fighters bring their stadium anthems to St James' Church, An Daingean. The surprise performance teas...
19/03/2026
***Issued by RT on behalf of RTS Ireland Awards / Gradaim RTS 2026...
19/03/2026
It's a double feature on GFN Thursday. This week, GeForce NOW offers smoother sights in virtual reality (VR) and a sprawling new land to conquer.
Streaming...
18/03/2026
Newly named chief product officer (CPO), Larissa G rner Meeus will return to Net Insight on May 4.
Larissa G rner Meeus will become CPO of Net Insight on May 4...
18/03/2026
SVG Europe's The Football Summit 2026 explored how the sports broadcasting i...
18/03/2026
The 2026 NAB Show kicks off one month from today and SVG is once again set to cover the show from every angle. SVG's SportsTech@NAB Show Blog is now live - ...
18/03/2026
(L-R) The cast and crew of Dead Lover at The Ray Theater for its premiere at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. (Photo by Robin Marshall/Shutterstock for Sundan...
18/03/2026
Yamaha C7 captured in Nashville
Wiltone Productions have announced the release of Music Row Piano, a deeply sampled Yamaha C7 piano library that's been ...
18/03/2026
Bass-enhancement plug-in upgraded
Along with a steady stream of new releases, Techivation have recently been revisiting some of the older plug-ins in their ...
18/03/2026
Mix-reference plug-in overhauled
iZotope's powerful mix-referencing plug-in has just reached its third major version, and now boasts a new capture proce...
18/03/2026
Latest EZKeys 2 expansion arrives
Toontrack's staggering collection of EZKeys 2 expansions has grown once again, and the latest instalment delivers a on...
18/03/2026
Jess Ho explores the politics of food in new SBS Audio podcast For The Culture
18 March, 2026
Media releases
New SBS Audio podcast For The Culture, hosted ...
18/03/2026
Future-ready broadcasts with ATSC 3.0 and enhanced services from Rohde & Schwarz...
18/03/2026
London Calling - When The Industry Convened to Help Streaming Find its MoJo In this blog, Laura Rognoni reflects on key discussions from the Connected TV World...
18/03/2026
SMPTE Unveils 2026 NAB Show Educational Presentations
Brie Clayton March 18, 2026
0 Comments
SMPTE , the home of media professionals, technologists, a...
18/03/2026
Auditel Ad Campaign Shot on Blackmagic PYXIS 12K
Brie Clayton March 18, 2026
0 Comments
LED wall virtual production blends 12K open gate acquisition w...
18/03/2026
Brainstorm transforms productivity and sustainability with Suite 7 at NAB Show 2...
18/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/03/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
18/03/2026
SMPTE , the home of media professionals, technologists, and engineers, today unveiled its educational presentations for the 2026 NAB Show. This year SMPTE will ...
18/03/2026
Maxon, maker of powerful, approachable software solutions for creators working in 2D and 3D design, motion graphics, visual effects, gaming, and more, today ann...
18/03/2026
Digital Alert Systems
Preview
2026 NAB Show
April 19 - 22
Booth C3452
At the 2026 NAB Show, Digital Alert Systems will showcase Version 6.0 of its DASDEC ...
18/03/2026
Setplex today announced that it will showcase its complete, fully integrated Zapflex platform for the first time at the 2026 NAB Show, introducing powerful new ...
18/03/2026
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT RELATES TO THE DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION THAT QUALIFIED OR MAY HAVE QUALIFIED AS INSIDE INFORMATION WITHIN THE MEANING OF ARTICLE 7(1) OF THE ...
18/03/2026
COW Jobs: Seeking DP for Low Budget Dramedy - Chicago
Brie Clayton March 17, 2026
0 Comments
Seeking Director of Photography for Low Budget Dramedy Fe...
18/03/2026
COW Jobs: Seeking Gaffer for Low Budget Dramedy - Chicago
Brie Clayton March 17, 2026
0 Comments
Seeking Gaffer for Low Budget Dramedy Feature Film- I...
18/03/2026
COW Jobs: Seeking Location, Sound for Low Budget Dramedy - Chicago
Brie Clayton March 17, 2026
0 Comments
Seeking Location/Sound for Low Budget Dramed...
18/03/2026
COW Jobs: Seeking Child Wrangler for Low Budget Film - Chicago
Brie Clayton March 17, 2026
0 Comments
Seeking Child Wrangler for Low Budget Dramedy Fe...
18/03/2026
Calrec Redefines Broadcast Workflows at NAB 2026 with its Most Powerful Hardware...
18/03/2026
Oscar Nominated Two People Exchanging Saliva Posted with DaVinci Resolve Studio
Brie Clayton March 17, 2026
0 Comments
DaVinci Resolve Studio handle...
18/03/2026
Boston Conservatory Presents Celebrated Musical Satire Urinetown Performances for this Center Stage production will take place at Boston Conservatory Theater ...
18/03/2026
Charlie Puth Joins Switched on Pop at Berklee NYC The Berklee alum spoke with host and Berklee NYC professor Charlie Harding for a live taping, answering audi...
WHY THIS MATTERS: Cable networks see data and lower ad loads as ways to compete in the upcoming upfront market.
