AMSTERDAM—Nielsen’s Gracenote unit has unveiled a new offering to help content publishers and broadcasters get their Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV (FAST) channels and programming distributed by major streaming platforms more easily.
The Gracenote FAST Program, which Gracenote will be showing during IBC2023, uses advanced data enrichment services to help Gracenote customers accelerate time-to-market for their FAST offerings.
“The rapid rise of FAST has been one of the most notable recent developments in the global video ecosystem,” said Vikram Kulkarni, vice president, strategic initiatives, EMEA at Gracenote. “Based on our position at the heart of this ecosystem, we are uniquely positioned to help content publishers from small to large benefit from the maturation of FAST and we look forward to helping them achieve better FAST content visibility, consumption and monetization through our Program.”
In announcing the launch, Gracenote highlighted the growing importance of FAST offerings in the streaming landscape and cited data from Statista projecting that revenue generated by FAST channels worldwide will reach $18 billion by 2028 with the U.S., U.K., South Korea, Germany, India, Canada and Brazil the leading markets.
To capitalize on that growth, Gracenote explained that content owners need high-quality normalized metadata and connected content IDs to facilitate distribution on streaming platforms, drive program and channel visibility as well as increase viewership.
Gracenote FAST Program participants that submit their channel portfolios directly to Gracenote benefit from expert enrichment of editorial and contextual data plus access to rich program imagery which drive increased channel engagement. Assignment of Gracenote IDs to participants’ content streamlines placement on major streaming platforms through Gracenote Listing Distribution Services and enables easier content discovery, the Nielsen unit said.
In addition, Program participants receive a “Gracenote Certified” designation giving them an advantage when pitching their FAST offerings to platforms which prefer and in some cases require standardized Gracenote metadata and IDs. This label ensures that all data meets the various requirements for the streaming platforms resulting in a turnkey program for participating content providers.
Gracenote will exhibit at IBC in Amsterdam from 15 - 18 September. Company executives will also participate in a fireside chat titled “FAST Talk: A Discussion on Global Expansion Challenges and Opportunities” and deliver a presentation titled “Metadata: The Essential Building Block for FAST.” To learn more, visit https://events.nielsen.com/ibc2023.
