BrightRoll and IAB Annual Report Reveals Breakout Year for Digital Video Advertising in Canada

Programmatic adoption, advances in targeting and measurement bring digital video into the mainstream and help advertisers reach audiences

SAN FRANCISCO and TORONTO(06 Jun 2013)

BrightRoll, the largest independent video advertising platform, along with IAB Canada, today released the third annual Canada Video Advertising Report, revealing a breakout year for digital video in 2013. This year’s report, surveying more than 300 advertising executives at top agencies across Canada, addresses key industry trends to help marketers navigate the shifting media landscape and gain an understanding of the opportunities and challenges that digital advertising presents.

Over the last three years, digital video has become one of the fastest-growing segments of advertising in Canada, where consumers are some of the most sophisticated viewers of online and mobile video content in the world. According to comScore, 92 percent of Canadian Internet users watch videos online, and in the past year, the number of consumers watching videos on smartphones has more than doubled. The 2013 report reveals Canadian advertisers are accelerating spending towards digital video (up 42 percent from 2012) to meet growing demands from clients looking to reach audiences across screens.

Brands and agencies have increased confidence in video as a valuable and effective tool to build engagement, enhance brand reach and deliver proven ROI. Not only is digital video the preferred ad format – 69 percent of respondents find video equally or more effective than TV, while 86 percent prefer video to display – advertisers no longer question its effectiveness. This year’s report also confirms Canadian advertisers are shifting towards programmatic technology, including real-time bidding (RTB), to buy video. Forty-one percent of Canadian agencies expect to allocate half or more of their ad spend to programmatic buying in 2013, citing pricing efficiency as the key benefit.

Technological advances in ad buying, serving and measurement are all contributing to the rapid growth of digital video in Canada. Data-driven targeting capabilities enable advertisers to reach precise, highly engaged audiences, while advanced measurement provides a deeper understanding of a campaign’s effectiveness and reach. According to agency respondents, completed views are seen as the most important success metric for video campaigns (a 92 percent increase from 2012). While industry standards for viewability are still being defined, 67 percent of respondents seek to validate the viewability of their video ad campaigns. Thirty percent of Canadian advertisers would like to better understand how GRP audience measurement can be applied to digital video to improve campaigns and complement TV ad buys.

Additional key findings from the report include:

• When asked what aspect of digital video advertisers find most valuable, 39 percent cite video’s targeting capabilities, while 24 percent cite reach.
• Fifty percent of respondents confirm that half or more of their RFPs in the last year included a digital video component – a 22 percent increase from 2010.
• One third of agency respondents believe that online or mobile video will see the highest growth in media spending in 2013. By contrast, TV and connected TV will experience the least growth.
• Thirty percent of respondents say that GRP/TRP is the best metric to measure audience reach, while advanced iGRP techniques allow advertisers to get a more precise reading.
• As Canadian advertisers move toward programmatic buying platforms, 41 percent of respondents are likely or somewhat likely to consolidate video ad buys onto a single platform solution.

“IAB Canada’s research partnership with BrightRoll has uncovered so many rich insights this year, based on our largest agency sample to-date,” said Steve Rosenblum, research director, IAB Canada. “This year’s report sheds light on all key factors contributing towards the brilliant outlook for digital video in this country.”

“As Canada’s appetite for online and mobile video continues to grow, advertisers have a unique opportunity to reach more consumers through the power of sight, sound and motion,” said David Bellemare, managing director, BrightRoll Canada. “This year’s survey confirms advertisers are more confident in digital video as an advertising platform, and thanks to technological advancements in ad buying and measurement, they are able to demonstrate campaign effectiveness and ROI.”

Download a full copy of the 2013 Canada Video Advertising Report.

About BrightRoll

BrightRoll is the largest independent video advertising platform for reaching audiences across web, mobile and connected TV. The company powers digital video advertising for the world’s largest brands including 90 percent of the top 50 US advertisers and 17 of the top 20 advertising technology companies. The platform enables advertisers to reach 4 in 5 video viewers online and consistently ranks among the top two video ad platforms in ads served. As a result, BrightRoll technology collects and analyzes hundreds of billions of data points monthly enabling real-time decisions that drive ROI for advertisers. To learn more, visit www.brightroll.com.

About IAB Canada
The Interactive Advertising Bureau of Canada (IAB Canada) is a not-for-profit trade association that oversees the digital advertising industry in Canada. The IAB represents Canada’s most well-known and respected advertisers, agencies, measurement companies, educational institutions and government associations operating within the space. IAB Canada and its members create guidelines, research, training, and events to help grow the digital advertising ecosystem in Canada.