Synamedia CTO shares 2024 predictions
December 8, 2023
Marc Baillavoine, CTO at video network Synamedia, has shared his industry precitions for 2o24. Firstly, Baillavoine states that AI’s hype is officially unavoidable:
If 2023 was the year that ChatGPT took over the headlines, 2024 will be the year where technologists across all industries, including video streaming, will go beyond the soundbites and start using AI to transform the user experience and business operations.
For example, by the 2027 Rugby World Cup (where, as a Frenchman I believe France will fare better…), ads will be less intrusive and super-targeted, benefiting from AI-based dynamic ad insertion. AI will analyse your viewing behaviour to understand your tastes, habits and preferences. It will then insert personalised ads directly into your programming. No longer will you see the French team wearing logos from brands you have no interest in.
As a fan, this enhances my viewing experience. As a technologist, this is the tip of the iceberg because the possibilities AI brings can feel endless – a feeling that energizes us to constantly innovate.
- Energy-inefficiency will start to become extinct
The greening of streaming is a catchy phrase – and those who haven’t caught on will no doubt be left behind in 2024.
In our daily lives, we shut off the lights when we leave the room because it saves energy. Why wouldn’t we do the same for video processing? It’s this exact question that led us to the development of Quortex Play just-in-time streaming. You use it when a viewer calls for content, and you turn it off when they do. The concept is simple, but the energy efficiency impact is massive.
Across all other industries, energy efficiency is a top business concern. It’s no longer a choice to think about carbon emissions, it’s an absolute must. We’re already seeing more RFPs – especially from public companies and large corporations – that require the ability to demonstrate energy efficiency in their requests, which factors heavily in their rating and decision process. In 2024, we will see the launch of more energy-efficient solutions, while not impacting viewer experience.
There was once a time when the ‘consumerisation of IT’ was all the rage in the enterprise. In 2024, we will see ‘the YouTube-isation of television’ dominate demand in a similar fashion.
- Per-user, hyper-customisation of content across platforms and devices will dominate demand
User experience on YouTube and TikTok is all based on previous viewing. If you watch a cat video, your feed will no doubt be filled with cat videos from other sources. Most YouTube viewers don’t care who created and owns the content, as long as it is engaging.
In 2024 this level of hyper-customisation will dominate across TV and streaming, beyond the likes of Netflix who are already personalising experiences. There are technologies available to make customisation dynamic. If we look at what ‘just in time’ technologies like Quortex Play and advanced CDNs can do, there’s no doubt that the technology is there. It’s now a matter of getting businesses on board with finding new routes to monetisation that they may have previously disregarded out of fear of losing subscriber mind-share – for example by deeply personalising their ads, providing per-user targeted ads or even adapting the content in real time, based on the individual subscriber’s taste and likes.
With streaming service churn rate holding steady at 47 per cent globally according to Parks Associates, the argument for retention centers back on content availability and user experience. Viewers will come to a service if it has content they’re interested in and the experience is seamless. There’s no doubt that linear TV as we know it will slowly fade out and be replaced by Spotify-like TV experiences that cater to each subscriber’s own personal sequence of programmes and ads.
Those players – service providers and content owners alike – who recognise this first and invest in user experience and a dynamic content library will be the ones to thrive.
- Technologies that enable adaptive advertising will be top sellers
Ads will become more subtle yet more engaging. We will see ads on the football field using technology overlays that are targeted to that exact user or household. You will see your favourite character munching on the latest flavour of your preferred snack while your neighbour will see theirs – all dynamically.
Today, when an advertiser purchases an ad spot, they are for a certain time slots either pre-roll, mid-roll, post-roll… But in 2024, we expect ad buys to be made based on time and placement on screen. This means there could be a lower ad rate when a snack is positioned on a counter at the back of the scene compared to when the main character is eating it.
What’s more, brands will benefit financially from this new data-driven ad placement strategy. Performance marketing is a hot trend in CTV today – where brands pay based on the success of their ads. Insights about click-throughs and even purchases mean brands will pay the appropriate amount based on the exact reach of their advertising.
In an upcoming Tour de France, expect to compare notes with your neighbour on what ads you see on the yellow jersey cyclist’s shorts.