Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Cracking the Code - Navigating the Challenges of Monetizi...

15/08/2024

By Nate Frink, EVP Global Operations, Vubiquity Free Ad-Supported Streaming Television (FAST) channels have emerged as an attractive option for content monetization. FAST channels offer a unique opportunity to monetize content that might not perform well in a Video-on-Demand (VOD) setting. Think of the back catalog of classic game shows. Driven by nostalgia, people will often watch them, but will they search for them? And will major streaming services even promote them?

According to S&P Global Market Intelligence, total FAST ad revenues in the U.S. approached $4 billion in 2022 and are expected to more than double to just under $9 billion by 2026. The promise of substantial advertising revenues is also a significant driver for the growth of FAST in Europe . According to Omdia, by 2027, the revenue opportunity outside of the US is expected to be approximately $1.6 billion. This growth will be driven by markets like the UK and Germany, which show strong expansion and increasing FAST adoption.

When done right, FAST can generate real money, but channels face numerous challenges on the road to success, and many struggle to simply survive.

The Struggle is Real: The Reality of Monetization Take the example of the Tastemade TV. At the initial launch, the channel struggled due to a lack of differentiation from other food and travel content. Despite the engaging content, the channel couldn t attract a sustainable viewership. However, by pivoting their strategy and partnering with multiple streaming platforms to increase its reach, Tastemade was able to attract a larger audience to become a prominent FAST player.

Despite their increasing popularity, many FAST channels still struggle to achieve profitability. There are three primary reasons for this.

The first issue could be described as the field of dreams mentality "If you build it, they will come. Many FAST channel operators believe that merely distributing quality content will attract advertisers. This is a critical misconception. Without a robust strategy to attract advertisers, simply having good content is not enough.

Consider the CPM (cost per mille), which calculates the total ad spend per 1,000 impressions. Many FAST channels grapple with ad marketplaces that don't match their content, leading to low CPM and lower revenue. Even worse, many channels without active monitoring face ad insertion rates as low as 5% or less, leaving unfilled revenue opportunities running as generic slates (we'll be right back). This low fill rate and CPM mean that operating costs frequently exceed revenue, leaving these channels financially strained.

The second major hurdle is the technological complexity in launching and maintaining FAST channels. Unlike broadcast media, which benefits from decades of streamlined vendor support, FAST technology is still in its adolescence. A FAST channel requires integrating a multitude of technologies, making it a complex and often fragmented process. Efficiently delivering high-quality video via the Internet demands advanced content delivery networks (CDNs) capable of handling fluctuating bandwidth requirements. Also, there's the need for sophisticated ad-decision servers and real-time bidding systems to dynamically insert ads into the streaming content without disrupting the viewer's experience.

In addition, playback technologies must ensure that content is accessible across a variety of devices and platforms, from smart TVs to mobile phones. Devices often have different specifications, requiring adaptive bitrate streaming and robust transcoding solutions. Plus, analytics and reporting tools to monitor performance, viewer engagement, and ad effectiveness necessitate the integration of multiple data sources and backend systems.

The fragmented nature of these technologies means that any disruption or incompatibility can significantly hinder the performance and reliability of the channel. Thus, it is not just a matter of assembling the right pieces. It's also ensuring those pieces work seamlessly together, making it a complex and ongoing challenge for organizations venturing into the FAST space.

The third consideration is the myriad of government regulations that vary across geographies. For example, European FAST channels face the stringent requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Touted as the toughest privacy and security law globally, GDPR mandates that consumers must provide active consent before ads can be served to them. This regulatory hurdle significantly impacts the ad revenue potential for FAST channels operating in Europe, adding another layer of complexity to their monetization strategies.

FAST Forward to Profit So, how do you overcome these three common, yet significant, challenges? First, by partnering with server-side ad platforms and matching ad marketplaces to your content types, you can improve ad placement and monitoring. Continuously monitoring channels will ensure they hit the desired CPM and fill rates. Actively adjusting ad-run times, breaks, and targeting can provide better monetization outcomes. A well-matched ad marketplace matches ads, consumers & content.

Attracting advertisers in the FAST ecosystem demands more than just content creation; it requires data-driven strategies, targeted marketing efforts, and strong relationships with advertisers. Channels must demonstrate value to advertisers by leveraging viewer data and analytics to offer targeted ad placements.

The FAST ecosystem employs two primary monetization models:

Revenue-Share Model: The platform sells the ad inventory and shares the revenue with the channel. This is the most prevalent model.

Inventory-Share Model: Both the platform and the channel sell portions of the ad inventory and retain their respective revenues. This model can be advantageous for channels that want to ha
LINK: https://kitplus.com/news/cracking-the-code-navigating-the-challenges-o...
See more stories from tvbay

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

07/10/2026

Dalet Flex LTS Delivers Smarter Media Operations from Ingest to Distribution

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, today announced the latest Long-Term Supported (LTS) release of Dalet Flex. Build...

06/09/2026

Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA World Cup 2026 in Germany with Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos

June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...

04/08/2026

Dalet Announces Commercial Availability of Dalia, Bringing Media-Aware Agentic AI to Enterprise Productions

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...

03/08/2026

SVGs TranSPORT Conference Returns to NYC on Oct. 20; Register Today!

SVG's annual TranSPORT conference returns to New York City for a full day of sessions focused on the current state of live-sports-transmission technology. S...

03/08/2026

SVG All-Stars: Stefan Richardson, Director, Global Broadcast, Riot Games

A five-time Emmy winner, this esports vet has built a production career on live storytelling, audience connection, and meeting viewers wherever they are The sp...

03/08/2026

MLBs Jason Hedgcock on Using the Cloud To Produce World Baseball Classic Games for Netflix Japan

Live production in the cloud is a growing trend across the industry and Major Le...

03/08/2026

Cookie Queens Is Sweet With Substance

(L-R) Nyah B., Nala B., Shannon Elizabeth S., Celia K., Olive G., and Nikki B. attend the Q&A for Cookie Queens by Alysa Nahmias, an official selection of the...

03/08/2026

Rhodes launch Rhodes Clav Pro

Recreates a 1977 Hohner Clavinet D6 After launching a software recreation of their own electric piano, Rhodes set about capturing another classic instrument...

03/08/2026

Peak Tamer from Nicky Howard

A modern solution for an old technique Peak Tamer is a new standalone application that automatically applies gain automation to keep rogue peaks under cont...

03/08/2026

Sound Particles update Beat Panner

Plug-in gains object metadata automation export Sound Particles have just released an update that adds a new Metadata Automation function to their their rec...

03/08/2026

SGL Carbon and X-energy announce capacity expansion for Nuclear-Grade Graphite

SGL Carbon and X-energy today announced a binding agreement to double SGL's production capacity for medium-grain isotropic graphite ( NBG-18 ), a specialize...

03/08/2026

Glensound launches Greater Divine Supernal at PLASA Show...

Glensound will launch the Greater Divine Supernal at PLASA Show 2026, extending its intelligent loudspeaker range for professional studio monitoring and live au...

03/08/2026

How Agua Tinta's Class Project Launched Her Songwriting Career

How Agua Tinta's Class Project Launched Her Songwriting Career Two years after graduating from Berklee, the songwriter has a Latin Grammy nomination, a So...

03/08/2026

Lightware UCX delivers campus-wide connectivity to Leiden...

Leiden University's new Campus Spui, located in the heart of The Hague, the diplomatic and administrative centre of the Netherlands, opened in February 2026...

03/08/2026

Bitfocus heads to the future with new investment

Bitfocus, the specialist in media control and monitoring, has received a further boost to its plans for continuing growth, particularly in Europe and North Amer...

03/08/2026

Leagues Cup kicks off tomorrow, August\u00A04, on\u00A0Apple\u00A0TV - UPDATE - Posted on 03 August 2026

Building on the momentum of a landmark year for soccer in North America, Leagues...

02/08/2026

Acustica introduce Dangerous Music BAX EQ Plugin

Classic EQ design goes virtual Following on from the launch of the 500-series version of their BAX EQ unit, Dangerous Music have now teamed up with modellin...

02/08/2026

Television, Resilience and National Security

The Government's Missing Dimension This article was originally published on the National Preparedness Commission website on 25 June 2026. ----------------...

01/08/2026

Harmonic Piano from The Crow Hill Company

Latest free Vaults instrument released The Crow Hill Company's Vaults collection offers a continually rotating selection of virtual instruments and samp...

01/08/2026

American Television Alliance Slams Deltavision Blackout on Verizon

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

01/08/2026

FreeWheel Debuts TV Series-Level Reporting for CTV Buyers

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

01/08/2026

Minnesota Timberwolves, DAZN to Launch New Streaming Offering

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

01/08/2026

Early Registration Opens for 2026 SMPTE Media Technology Summit

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

01/08/2026

NBCUniversal and YouTube Ink Landmark Distribution Deal

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

01/08/2026

COW Jobs: Lead Generation Representative - Animation Services

COW Jobs: Lead Generation Representative - Animation Services Brie Clayton July 31, 2026 0 Comments Lead Generation Representative - Animation Service...

01/08/2026

Emilie Lowe Shoots Award Winning Short Film Where Dead Things Grow with Blackmagic Design

Emilie Lowe Shoots Award Winning Short Film Where Dead Things Grow with Blackmag...

01/08/2026

Early Registration Opens for the 2026 SMPTE Media Technology Summit

Early Registration Opens for the 2026 SMPTE Media Technology Summit Brie Clayton July 31, 2026 0 Comments Initial Program Announced Alongside New Medi...

31/07/2026

SVG Sit-Down: NHL's Steve Mayer on Building a Centralized Production Operation From Scratch

With an emphasis on local, the league is looking beyond the initial four teams t...

31/07/2026

Reflecting on the 2026 Summer Season of Our Sundance Institute Labs

The 2026 Sundance Institute Directors Lab fellows in Estes Park, Colorado (Photo by Gabe Rovick) Dear Friends, This has been an extraordinary year for our ar...

31/07/2026

Audiocube launch Audiocube Space

Offers 360-degree sound placement in any DAW Audiocube have just announced the launch of a new plug-in that embeds a complete 3D acoustic environment inside...

31/07/2026

Sonarworks expand SoundID VoiceAI library

10 new Chinese C-Pop voices introduced While Sonarworks are best known to many for their room-correction software, their product range also includes an inno...

31/07/2026

PSPaudioware release PSP BBDelay

Reimagines the vintage BBD sound character PSPaudioware have now officially launched the new delay plug-in that they were previewing at GearExpo UK. Said to...

31/07/2026

Savannah Bananas Hits a Broadcast Home Run with Calrec

The Savannah Bananas has built its reputation on refusing to play baseball by traditional rules, and the team's production arm Banana Ball TV (BTV) has draf...

31/07/2026

How Valuable Is TV to Smaller, Independent Cable Operators?

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

31/07/2026

Early Registration Opens for the 2026 SMPTE Media Techno...

SMPTE, the home for media professionals, technologists and engineers, today opened early registration for the 2026 Media Technology Summit (MTS) and announced i...

31/07/2026

Central Christian Church Connects Remote Production Teams...

Clear-Com announced that Central Christian Church has transformed communication across its live production operations by implementing Clear-Com's LQ Seri...

31/07/2026

Haivision To Feature Makito ONE, Falkon X4 At IBC 2026

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

31/07/2026

ABC Stations Tout Community Support for License Renewals

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

31/07/2026

Finalists Announced for IBC2026 Innovation Awards

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

31/07/2026

IBC2026 Innovation Awards finalists unveiled honouring co...

IBC has unveiled the finalists for the IBC2026 Innovation Awards, recognising collaborative projects from around the world that solve real-world challenges and ...

31/07/2026

From focus puller to colourist

From focus puller to colourist Caroline Shawley July 30, 2026 0 Comments Ana Mar a Ormaza shares her story of instinct, storytelling and finding a cre...

31/07/2026

Amazon Prime Documentary Andata e Ritorno Relies on Blackmagic Design

Amazon Prime Documentary Andata e Ritorno Relies on Blackmagic Design Brie Clayton July 30, 2026 0 Comments DaVinci Resolve Studio and Blackmagic Clou...

31/07/2026

Krotos Launches Video to Sound Plugin for DaVinci Resolve

Krotos Launches Video to Sound Plugin for DaVinci Resolve Brie Clayton July 30, 2026 0 Comments AI-assisted workflow helps editors add synchronized, p...

31/07/2026

Think summer of sport is over? Think again. More live sport. More big moments. More to come on RT

Athletics, Camogie, the Dublin Horse Show, the FAI Cup, Golf, Hockey, the UEFA C...

31/07/2026

Half-Year Report on SES's Liquidity Contract

Luxembourg, July 31, 2026 - Pursuant to the liquidity contract entered into by SES with BNP Paribas as of 7 April 2026, please see the below update on the progr...

31/07/2026

SES Publishes FY2025 EU Taxonomy Restatement

Luxembourg, July 31, 2026 - SES today published a restatement of its FY2025 EU Taxonomy (Article 8) disclosure. The restatement updates the FY2025 EU Taxonomy d...

31/07/2026

Mercedes-Benz Ireland returning as the official car partner of The Traitors Ireland

RT Commercial has today announced Mercedes-Benz Ireland will return as the offi...

31/07/2026

RT Supporting the Arts is supporting 15 cultural events nationwide this August

RT Supporting the Arts is delighted to spotlight a diverse range of arts, culture and heritage events taking place across Ireland this August. From major festi...