CBS, Netflix, Hulu, AMC, Disney Ad Chiefs on 2023 Outlooks

Throughout Adweek’s end of year coverage for 2022, we’ve seen buyers comment on how the ad market has changed, heard TV execs and insiders reveal what they’ve learned and reviewed how the biggest streamers stack up. Now, it’s time to look ahead. To help close out our year in review stories, Adweek asked 18 TV executives and ad sales chiefs what topic would dominate the TV landscape in 2023. From the continued conversations around currency to what Don Draper would think of the rise in AVODs, here's what they had to say about what (or who) we should keep an eye on and the topics that are top of mind for them. These interviews have been edited and condensed for clarity. Frances Berwick, chairman, entertainment networks, NBCUniversal Television and Streaming: The potential or reality of a writers strike. Craig Erwich, president, Hulu Originals and ABC Entertainment: Quinta Brunson! We’ve always known how deeply talented Quinta is, but watching her solidify her spot as a comedy icon for her work on Abbott Elementary has been nothing short of remarkable, and I can’t wait to see how she continues to build on this momentum next year. Rita Ferro, president, Disney Advertising: Identity as the evolution of currency. Everything we do starts with the viewer, which means we need to understand holistically how audiences are engaging with content, and first-party data is the Rosetta stone that translates that data into real insights for brands. We’ve been preparing to meet this moment for years, investing in technology like the Disney Audience Graph and solutions like our clean room technology to create a future-proof framework for advertisers to plan, activate and measure against, [which has been] made possible by a foundation rooted in first-party identity. Kathleen Finch, chairman and CCO, U.S. Networks Group, Warner Bros. Discovery: Subs at any cost is not a viable business plan. 25 TV Execs and Insiders on 2022’s Most Important, Yet Overlooked, Trends Marianne Gambelli, president of advertising sales, marketing and brand partnerships, Fox Corp.: In 2022, we started to see further clarity around the streaming marketplace as more media companies continued to pivot away from chasing subscribers for their expensive and declining subscription strategies and started to introduce ad tier models. In 2023, we’ll see the AVOD space continue to evolve and become a more prominent part of discussions with advertisers, ushering in a new era of TV and media unlike anything seen before. We’re perfectly positioned with Tubi. From the beginning, they’ve been entirely focused on advertisers, and Tubi is the perfect complement to Fox’s industry-leading portfolio, delivering the incremental reach, scale and transparency needed to drive the outcomes and relevance for an advertiser’s brand message. Jeremi Gorman, president worldwide advertising, Netflix: The entry into the AVOD space by Netflix and our streaming service counterparts seems to be a very hot topic, and I don’t expect that to change over the next year. We are very fortunate to be in the middle of that conversation as advertisers rethink their marketing mix with all of these new entrants. In addition, I foresee conversation continuing to blossom around the future of TV and how the TV and digital worlds can come together to make advertising as relevant as possible to customers in these premium environments. John Halley, president, Paramount Advertising: Currency. This will be the year it evolves. It’s not a choice. Alison Hoffman, president, Domestic Networks, Starz: A real focus on profitability and delivering value to the customer via bundling and packaging. Kim Kelleher, chief commercial officer, AMC Networks: Everyone suddenly loves ads! After so many years of hearing that commercial-free was the only way viewers wanted to consume content in this new digital world, we see the exponential rise of ad-supported FAST and AVOD platforms, ad-never streaming platforms like Netflix, Disney+ and HBO Max are rolling out the 30-second [ads] on new tiers, and suddenly commercial breaks are the hottest thing in media, regardless of the platform. Don Draper wouldn’t know what to do with all of this happiness. Alison Levin, vp, ad sales and strategy, Roku: Ad-supported streaming will be front and center [after] 2022 brought new and updated ad-supported tiers from all major streaming players. If current growth trends continue, ad-supported streaming is poised to surpass subscription streaming this decade. Marketers will follow the consumer into a world where all TV—and all TV ads—will be streamed. Chris McCarthy, president/CEO, Showtime and Paramount Media Networks: Two parts: the first being deeper and more meaningful integrations with our closest advertising partners to ensure we’re delivering the most value so that we can continue to weather macro trends and come out the other side even stronger. The second being doubling down on our successful franchise strategy, which has fueled our growth across the company. From the Yellowstone franchise to South Park to our global unscripted franchises, together they’ve helped propel our streaming service to become the fastest growing in the U.S. two years in a row, while also boosting our traditional businesses and ultimately building significant long-term value for the company. Dennis Miller, president, The CW Network: The implosion of RSNs and the move from growth at all costs to focus on cash flow. Peter Olsen, evp, ad sales and content partnerships, A+E Networks: Currency and measurement will continue to dominate the conversation in 2023, but I’m only focused on those points as much as they’ll show me how to help our advertisers grow their business. That should always be our goal. Sometimes the industry gets bogged down, spending too much time talking about approaches instead of actually working toward business building solutions. The 10 Biggest Convergent TV Moments of 2022 Amy Reisenbach, president, CBS Entertainment: How do we stretch every dollar—even more. Rob Sharenow, president of programming, A+E Networks: Being a content person and an optimist, I’m looking forward to great creative igniting the most conversation and business for everyone. All consumption and monetization begins and ends with the creative on every platform. Donna Speciale, president ad sales and marketing, TelevisaUnivision: There’s no doubt streaming will continue to drive change across the TV landscape in 2023. We launched our ad-supported streaming service, ViX, this year, and the demand from clients has been incredible. There’s no other streaming destination for Hispanics that has the scope of originally produced Spanish-language content like ViX does, and having a differentiated product offering is going to be extremely valuable as more commercial streamers accelerate their products in the year ahead. Jon Steinlauf, chief U.S. advertising sales officer, Warner Bros Discovery: The big topics dominating the conversation in the TV industry right now that we’ll see carry into 2023 are ad-supported streaming, both AVOD and FAST, and greater demand for data-driven targeting. Rob Wade, CEO, Fox Entertainment: While programming competition is a constant, scale will take a back seat to reach as platforms once dedicated to subscription-based revenues by providing niche pockets of content will become more reliant on ad dollars and follow a more broadcast-centric business model. Knowing your audience and best connecting with the most viewers possible is priority No. 1, which is a strategy broadcast has successfully deployed for years.

Outlook

From Currency to AVOD, These Topics Will Dominate the TV Landscape in 2023

18 TV execs and ad sales chiefs weigh in on the buzzwords driving the new year

Bill Bradley

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