For streaming companies, and commercial broadcasters with VoD channels, the pause ad is a new way of targeting viewers when theyre distracted by something other than their screen, writes Operatives SVP of global sales, David Dembowski
By Contributor
Published: February 8, 2024
For streaming companies, and commercial broadcasters with VoD channels, the pause ad is a new way of targeting viewers when they're distracted by something other than their screen, writes Operative's SVP of global sales, David Dembowski
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin>
Advertising innovation is coming to a TV near you. The latest advertising format to hit the big screen is the pause ad an ad that airs when someone has paused what they are watching. In the UK, pause ads have been on Channel 4 for years. In the US, Netflix has recently rolled out the new format while Peacock calls pause ads high-impact and unobtrusive on their website.
With any innovative format, the structure that media companies build around it is at least as important as the ad product itself. Without good processes and technology to manage new ads, it will be hard to sell or scale. There are many things that go into making a new ad product successful. Media companies need to enable sellers to easily price and package the ad format into a larger proposal. They need to easily traffic creative and manage the campaign. And, they need to report on the ad in a way that helps advertisers compare its performance against other ads in their media plan.
Incorporating pause ads into the media mix Selling advertising is not like selling shoes. Typically, if someone wants to buy shoes, they look for a pair that they like and they buy it. One product, one transaction. Advertising transactions are far more complex. An advertiser working with a streaming company like Channel 4 or Hulu is likely spending money on millions or even billions of ad impressions, targeting specific audiences and content across a number of different ad formats. Pricing needs to be negotiated, creatives need to be built, and campaigns need to be optimised continuously across these various ad formats.
Pause ads are one of a number of innovative ad types on streaming. Viewers are also seeing clickable commerce-driven ads, pinch back ads that show content in a smaller window, and even virtual product placement, ads embedded into content using AI. It's safe to assume that as media companies and advertisers expand their streaming focus, new ads will emerge.
To succeed, media companies need processes and technology in place that can expand to ingest a new format like pause ads. This means that they need an order management system that has a unified product catalogue to help sales to create larger proposals that include these ads. It also means they need revenue management that can help the ad operations team to traffic and manage the ad alongside the rest of the media buy.
Understanding the value of pause ads While pause ads give advertisers a fantastic canvas for their creative, time will tell how effective the ads are at scale. Today, advertisers are mostly still testing the ad format. One aspect that needs to be analysed is ad recall. If someone is pausing their TV, presumably, they are shifting their attention elsewhere. Perhaps they're grabbing a snack in the kitchen or responding to a text on their phone, which means they aren't going to be a captive audience for the pause ad. However, they will likely see the ad when they turn their attention back to the screen.
Having unified insights about pause ads compared to the rest of other advertising in a media buy can help advertisers learn quickly to determine how to best incorporate new formats like pause ads into their broader strategy.
What's more, media companies need to have an overview of their own performance when it comes to new formats. Understanding the pricing and demand for any new ad type is critical to create a product catalogue that is not just enticing for advertisers, but also profitable to the publisher.
Ultimately, pause ads are one of many new ad types that media companies are introducing in order to maximise their revenue from streaming. Streaming delivers more flexibility, targeting and richer insights than broadcast, so it should be easier for streaming companies to quickly learn what works and what doesn't.
However, with all of these benefits comes more complexity, and so streaming companies also need to ensure that their operations and technology supports an expanded product catalogue and more sophisticated products overall.
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
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...
08/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
08/05/2026
Liberty University on why broadcast technology isn't just a technical invest...
08/05/2026
COW Jobs: UGC, On-Camera Video Content
Brie Clayton May 7, 2026
0 Comments
UGC, On-Camera Video Content
April 17, 2026Documentary Editor - US,......
07/05/2026
Journalists reporting on Sudan are working in one of the most complex and fast-m...
07/05/2026
Multi-year partnership positions Victory+ as a free home for Dallas Cowboys orig...
07/05/2026
From sideline reporting to directing and producing, the talented sophomore is building a well-rounded foundation for a career in live sports production
In the ...
07/05/2026
Cobalt Digital has received two Future Best of Show awards at NAB Show 2026. The COBALT blueCORE platform was recognized by TV Tech, and the COBALT PACIFIC ULL-...
07/05/2026
ESPN analyst Mina Kimes will host the televised semifinals and finals of the 202...
07/05/2026
Bitmovin has announced that MUBI, the global film streaming platform, has selected Bitmovin as its cloud VOD encoding partner. Bitmovin's encoding infrastru...
07/05/2026
NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises and the U.S. Soccer Federation have announced...
07/05/2026
Angel City Football Club (ACFC) and Victory have announced a regional broadcast partnership bringing live match coverage to fans across the greater Los Angeles...
07/05/2026
Spiideo has announced the launch of AI Highlights inside Spiideo Play, its automated sports production platform. AI Highlights combines video, event data, audio...
07/05/2026
Leostream Corporation has announced a unified remote access ecosystem for high-p...
07/05/2026
The Atlanta Dream has partnered with Victory to stream all locally broadcast Dream games for free, expanding the team's digital distribution strategy and g...
07/05/2026
Riedel Communications has announced the appointment of Marc Engroff as Chief Fin...
07/05/2026
SES and ARD, Germany's largest public broadcasting network, have announced a long-term extension of their satellite distribution partnership through 2039. U...
07/05/2026
UpLight Technologies delivers a flexible video and lighting system for a new televised sportLaunching the Pro Cheer League required more than creating a compell...
07/05/2026
Full Day Productions and GSE Worldwide have announced Spikes Under the Lights, a...
07/05/2026
Seit dem Start im Jahr 2023 hat DJ (Beta) das personalisierte H rerlebnis von 94...
07/05/2026
Da quando stata presentata nel 2023, DJ (beta) ha aiutato a definire un'esperienza d'ascolto pi personalizzata per 94 milioni di utenti Spotify Premi...
07/05/2026
Since launching in 2023, DJ (beta) has helped shape a more personalized listenin...
07/05/2026
Desde o lan amento em 2023, o DJ (beta) j ajudou a deixar a experi ncia de ouvi...
07/05/2026
From our earliest days, Spotify has been built on a simple principle: Great audio should be easy to reach. It's what's driven us to expand from music to...
07/05/2026
Asian and Pacific Islander artists continue to shape the global soundscape, pushing creative boundaries and connecting with fans worldwide. This Asian & Pacific...
07/05/2026
Company announce long-requested choir instrument
In the latest expansion of their Symphonic Elements series, UJAM have introduced an all-new vocal instrumen...
07/05/2026
Modular-inspired sound generation with digital control
Buchla have introduced Ziggy, a new compact synthesizer built around the company's complex oscill...
07/05/2026
Combines analogue voices with digital synthesis and sequencing
Polyend have announced Drums, a new hybrid analogue and digital drum machine that combines sy...
07/05/2026
Control surface now officially supports four DAWs
When Nektar launched the Panorama CS12 control surface, it worked exclusively with Apple's Logic Pro, ...
07/05/2026
In the first quarter 2026, SGL Carbon generated consolidated sales of 184.5 million, which was 49.8 million, or 21.3%, lower than in the prior year (Q1 2025: ...
07/05/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and Greenerwave achieve precise and fast ESA antenna characteriz...
07/05/2026
Two multi-role L3Harris products - the Red Wolf launched effects vehicle and SK...
07/05/2026
L3Harris will be developing key features of a secure and resilient digital infra...
07/05/2026
Alysa Liu and Shohei Ohtani Help Drive Viewership as 91 of the Top 100 Broadcast...
07/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/05/2026
Cobalt Digital Wins Two Future Best of Show Awards at 2026 NAB Show
Manufacturer Recognized by TV Tech and TVBEurope for Innovation in signal processing
Cobal...
07/05/2026
Software and hardware platforms, AI power and user-friendliness on show...
07/05/2026
Intinor will demonstrate its latest technical enhancements for the Direkt series at BroadcastAsia 2026. With a continued focus on reliable contribution and remo...
07/05/2026
Bitmovin has announced that MUBI has chosen Bitmovin as its cloud VOD encoding partner, replacing MUBI's legacy on premises encoding setup to improve scalab...
07/05/2026
Meet Graduates from Berklees Class of 2026 Members of this years graduating class reflect on their proudest moments at Berklee and look ahead to whats next.
...
07/05/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
07/05/2026
At BroadcastAsia 2026, Interra Systems will demonstrate its latest innovations in automated quality control (QC), real-time monitoring, and captioning. The comp...
07/05/2026
At this year's Broadcast Asia, PlayBox Neo is set to unveil recent innovations across its PlayBox Neo Suite and integrated range of broadcast media solution...
For streaming companies, and commercial broadcasters with VoD channels, the pause ad is a new way of targeting viewers when theyre distracted by something other than their screen, writes Operatives SVP of global sales, David Dembowski
