HbbTV Targeted Ad deployment boosted
November 24, 2022
Major industry players are taking action to firmly deploy the HbbTV specification for Targeted Advertising, HbbTV-TA, in the European market, opening possibilities for new monetisation opportunities for broadcasters, advertisers and manufacturers. This was one of the developments discussed at the recent 10th HbbTV Symposium and Awards 2022. The event was attended by around 200 participants from 18 countries in Europe, the US and Latin America.“One important trend which surfaced at the Symposium is the engagement by industry players in various initiatives to better use and implement the HbbTV specifications and make the HbbTV ecosystem more practical and efficient, as HbbTV is now a true business enabler for many companies and not just an innovation area. The foundation of ATVI is the perfect illustration of that,” said HbbTV Chairman Vincent Grivet (pictured).The Addressable TV Initiative (ATVI), founded by German media companies RTL Deutschland und Seven.One Entertainment Group, wants to achieve full technical interoperability of the HbbTV-TA and ADB2 specifications in smart TVs and set-top boxes across Europe. The initiative is open to all interested broadcasters, platform operators and hardware manufacturers, stressed Andre Prahl (RTL), co-managing director of the new venture, at the HbbTV Symposium and Awards 2022.Jan Vlček, President of AKTV, said: “We are very pleased to have participated in the 10th anniversary edition of the HbbTV Symposium and to host the event in Prague this year. For the representatives of the Czech Republic, it was a very successful event as the Voyo VOD service won two HbbTV Awards. This demonstrates the high level of technical maturity of our region and the readiness of clients to embark on innovative HbbTV campaigns in our country.”Key topics discussed at the conference include the involvement of HbbTV in the new DVB-I standard, which combines linear TV channels and streaming services in a unified channel list, the important topic of conformance regimes and interoperability, which ensure that reception devices fully comply with the HbbTV specifications, and technology trends such as the opportunities for broadcasters in the metaverse and HbbTV beyond classic broadcast environments.
“OTT is no excuse for not implementing HbbTV,” said Klaus Merkel (rbb), with reference to OTT providers such as 1&1 TV and Joyn which have implemented HbbTV on their platforms.