MANILA, PHILIPPINES – As parts of the world begin to open up after two years of the global pandemic, it’s fair to wonder if things really are going back to what we believed was “normal.” The outlook today is definitely more optimistic than it was for the past two years as vaccinations continue to roll out and many countries have slowly begun to reopen their borders. In the field of media, growth is being forecast and leading data, insights, and consulting company Kantar Group shares their own predictions for 2022.
Video streaming
The trends around video streaming show how video on demand has become such a lucrative service. Kantar’s TGI Global Quick View study of consumers in 25 markets shows that over half of internet- connected consumers claimed to have used pay TV or video streaming services just in the past week.
More subscription video on demand (SVOD) services are on the rise, leaving smaller services not having the confidence to continue by themselves. They are instead partnering with established cable and satellite TV operators to secure guaranteed subscribers when they launch.
Kantar is saying, however, that the subscription model is losing its power to drive long-term growth because there’s more competition for the same content. They say expect business models to diversify further this year as sole subscription services become scarce.
Because content really is king, content owners and producers could demand higher licensing and carriage fees than ever. Platform consideration will likely continue because of the need for more (and better) content bundles to lure viewers in an increasingly crowded marketplace.
What is going to happen to video streaming in 2022?
Antonio Wanderley, Executive Managing Director, Latin America & Head of Global Clients Media Division, Kantar, summarises the key predictions: https://t.co/ffj1ZVIe5p #Media2022 pic.twitter.com/kxBFg25cHo
— Kantar (@Kantar) January 13, 2022
The end of tracking cookies?
Tracking cookies have been part of the internet experience almost from the time of its inception. They have also helped facilitate the growth of the online advertising market. Google was supposed to end cookies because they had been pushed beyond their limits. However, a two-year reprieve was issued by Google following issues with competition authorities and lukewarm feedback on viable replacements.
Kantar predicts no one solution will replace third-party tracking cookies. Large platforms will look to machine learning and cryptographic techniques to place privacy-enhancing technologies over digital infrastructures even though new tech and techniques to follow cookies will enter the market this year.
There will still be a place for third-party data as long as it is privacy compliant, consented, and trustworthy. Since 80% of advertisers want their own in-house segmentations to enable media planning and activation, panel data will likely be reappraised in 2022. Ultimately, a balanced hybrid approach between owned and third-party data sources is predicted.
Alternatives to cookies have been hampered by concerns over unfair competitive advantages that technological giants have over everyone else. Global outages and accusations of wrongdoing in other parts of the tech sector could signify a shift in tone from governments who want to regulate and tax the most powerful businesses.
How does the deprecation of tracking cookies impact #media measurement? Louise Ainsworth explains what Kantar is doing to help brands tackle new approaches to data: https://t.co/oioJ4QW7gH #Media2022 pic.twitter.com/Qb7ZnfvhCA
— Kantar (@Kantar) January 24, 2022
Digital media continues to rise
The pandemic has pushed further growth in e-commerce and online video. Global advertising market share was at 48% in 2019 but rose to 58% by 2021. A shift has happened in marketers’ approaches to data, particularly with a desire for high-quality, accessible data.
With cookies about to be cast aside, a lack of competitive intelligence will be a major obstacle to validate marketing strategies and identify new opportunities. Advertisers are going to have to find a new system to turn data into insights while stating easily accessible.
Brands that take control of their data strategy early on will leverage the full power of their own direct consumer relationships and be able to make faster decisions, drive growth and remain agile among their competitors. Experimentation with first-party data will probably happen more with brands to unlock the power of their own data as they build better consumer relationships.
Media agencies will differentiate themselves by enhancing tools such as with inputs such as brand- specific media effectiveness learning, consumer receptivity to specific ad formats, and the personality attributes delivered by individual media brands.
Performance media
Brands switched tactics in the second year of the pandemic to fuel growth in performance media. Those brands drove more business through e-commerce and shorter-term marketing strategies that demanded a clear ROI.
Connected TV advertising revenue is on track to grow by 25% this year 23 and podcast revenue is set to surpass $1billion in the US alone. Google and Facebook generated $70billion in revenue through online advertising between them in Q1.
As 2021 showed the early stages of what has been termed the metaverse, the implications for performance marketing could be profound. The promise of what these converged worlds where physical and digital realities meet can deliver something new for advertisers.
The metaverse is gaining traction in some markets, and could have big implications for performance marketing channels. But how might brands approach it from a media measurement point of view? Manish Bhatia summarises the key points here: https://t.co/N7qTOdbJHl #Media2022 pic.twitter.com/zfAMwHS1OY
— Kantar (@Kantar) January 19, 2022
Expect to see a notable rise in the number of advertisers that supply their own first-party data to media and measurement companies – as well as call upon them to enrich their own data. There will be wide- ranging implications for virtual shopping and product testing, as well as the formation of new and interactive ad formats.
Measurement solutions that incorporate both the brand-building effects and direct sales returns of the same campaigns will emerge as the industry moves beyond only measuring reach and frequency. The global infrastructure will feel the strain of businesses continuing to embrace more opportunities to reach consumers through e-commerce.
Kantar says to expect the largest e-commerce businesses to seek new growth by heading out into the real world like Amazon has done. These businesses will also be making investments in brand-building media.
Learn more and download the report at: kantar.com/campaigns/media-trends-and-predictions-2022
