Video content providers struggle to monetize products across changing media platforms. A Los Angeles based company has launched a solution for publishers to boost revenue by connecting to viewers. IRIS.TV launched Smart-Streaming™ to help publishers increase video views from 40-400 percent. “The goal is to help publishers win in these digital markets by increasing engagement and monetization, without cannibalizing their existing business model,” said Field Garthwaite, CEO. “We built Smart-Streaming to increase direct revenues while understanding how to maximize indirect revenues from other distribution windows.” The product has been developed for more than two years. The algorithm can now provide sophisticated insight on data mapping and user interactions, and is the first of its kind to incorporate an interactive player, said Richie Hyden, chief operating officer. The interactive player with like and dislike buttons helps to personalize content through recommendations, similar to a Pandora for video. Hyden said this would yield higher revenues, better targeting of ads and enhanced audience engagement and development. “The value of a consumer interacting with your advertising (watching, clicking, etc.) far outweighs just a set of eyeballs scanning a page and ignoring the display ad in the corner,” said Vlad Strelsov, an account executive with WGN-TV in Chicago. And studies show that video advertising is a fast growing market. US digital ad spending is expected to nearly double from $4.14 billion this year to more than $8.04 billion by 2016, eMarketer reported. Strelsov agreed that there isn’t just a need for greater solutions to content monetization, but also a greater understanding of audience. While there is quantitative data on digital viewership through information on impressions and click-throughs, there isn’t nearly enough qualitative data, he said. IRIS.TV attacks this hurdle by gaining insight and analytics on how content is reaching viewers across web, mobile and Smart TV platforms. “Web and mobile video is the wild west of video distribution,” Garthwaite said. “What was previous seen as a threat to the current distribution model is actually an opportunity. “We increase the value of a publisher’s archive by creating personalized streams of content for every viewer, showing them the content they love that otherwise would be difficult to find.” The company has formed partnerships with Brightcove, Unicorn Media, Kaltura, Aspera and Akamai. Top media clients such as the New York Times and NBCUniversal use Brightcove Video Cloud. Kaltura integrated its products with more than 150,000 publishers worldwide. “Now we’re giving clients who use those providers the ability to have a dynamic recommendation system that they’ve never had before,” Hyden said. “When we implement our system, they don’t have to make any changes to their system. It means we’re integrated across all of their platforms.” IRIS.TV team members have worked with a range of entertainment and technology companies including HBO, ABC, Yahoo, Rand Corp., IMAX, Hulu and Rubicon Project, and data insights can be found at IRIS.TV’s blog. In the coming months, IRIS.TV is expected to grow significantly and will be opening an office in New York by the end of the year.
