Google AdWords for advertisers— specifically for video, and based on objective data about what kinds of content people watch, and therefore what kinds of ads to show them. The company has built up a pretty big customer base on both sides, with publishers like Condé Nast and brand advertisers like P&G, Ford, and Microsoft.
According to Shin, Visible has “data that no one else has, insights that no one else could have, and a way to optimize advertising in a way no one else could do.” Its competitors might disagree, but Shin says the ad sector has “a lot of people claiming to do different things” and “a lot of black-box, smoke and mirrors” stuff. “We’re a completely different species from anyone else in advertising,” he contends.
The future looks bright too, if you believe the reports that say video advertising is the fastest-growing segment online. (Banners are falling, while paid search seems to be holding steady.) What’s more, in terms of advertising, “video is growing more dramatically than mobile,” Shin says.
Today’s news touches on a few broader themes as well. One is that there hasn’t been a lot of funding in the video-ad sector lately. Two is that everything you watch or do online is being tracked and used by somebody. Three is that Visible Measures is yet another tech company that has been working on “big data” without calling it that.
I asked Shin for the most surprising trend he’s privy to about online video use. “People choose to watch advertiser-related content billions of times a month,” he says. “The biggest surprise is how much people seek out brand content. Users want good content from brands.”
