The issue Signes identifies is that when distributing a FAST channel on third-party services – for example on an LG or Samsung TV, Pluto TV or Rakuten TV, or devices like Roku sticks – then channel owners won’t necessarily have full control over the ad inventory. “That increases the risk of degrading the user experience with the same low-quality ads played repeatedly,” confirms video services and platform developer Zype. “This can cause viewers to avoid your channel, and your ad revenue will likely drop.” In addition, third-party platforms may take a cut of any ad revenue as a commission. However, these issues don’t emerge if you launch and distribute a FAST channel on your own OTT platform, where
ree ad-supported TV (FAST) is the hottest ticket in the connected TV universe. Whereas the US leads with more than 300 FAST channels, in Europe – which has more entrenched public broadcast
services – there are anywhere between 45 and 140 FAST channels in each of France, the UK, Germany, Italy and Spain. Among the reasons: consumers appreciate a stripped-back, linear viewing experience, and many more are willing to trade watching ads for content that’s free. That means there’s money to be made. In the US an overwhelming 92% of households are reachable with CTV advertising. A FAST channel would seem to offer a win-win for content owners, publishers and end-users alike, but before you start making and monetising one, there are a few building blocks to get to grips with. “What we are witnessing first-hand is a FAST land grab as content owners rush headlong to adopt a YouTube-style business model in order to quickly start monetising their VOD catalogue,” says Julien Signes, SVP and GM video network at Synamedia. “However, this locks content owners into a proprietary platform with unfavourable rates of ad revenue sharing.”
WHAT WE ARE WITNESSING FIRST-HAND IS A FAST LAND GRAB
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