The Commerce Desk grew by 27% year-over-year in Q3, with income now totaling $628 million and web earnings up from $39 million to $94 million in the identical interval.
Snooze. What’s new?
Nicely, with out breaking out new income metrics, The Commerce Desk divulged some fascinating tidbits about their enterprise. As an illustration, whereas the corporate doesn’t disclose CTV income, CEO Jeff Inexperienced mentioned CTV is now the biggest media channel for TTD.
CTV has flipped the equation on net show and cell. Equally, a yr in the past, Criteo lastly reported retargeting income as lower than half of its whole. The Commerce Desk is touting its long-held ambition to have extra CTV than banner adverts. At present, video adverts, which embody CTV, are near 50% of TTD’s general enterprise. Quickly, TTD shall be primarily a video advert purchaser.
“It’s onerous to not be bullish about CTV when it’s each our largest channel and our quickest rising,” Inexperienced mentioned.
And whereas CTV and retail media have been staples of each Commerce Desk quarterly report for years on finish, Inexperienced additionally put the concentrate on a couple of new alternatives, now that CTV has matured into the enterprise, not only a rhetorical objective.
Audio and Sports activities
Inexperienced mentioned he’s large on two new marketing campaign varieties, that are pretty small in programmatic proper now however maintain distinctive promise to advertisers.
The primary one is digital audio.
“I’m satisfied, if the most important gamers transfer accurately, they’ll seize one of many largest alternatives in promoting and media at present, which is the delta between time spent within the audio channel and the quantity of advert budgets heading to that channel,” Inexperienced mentioned.
Simply as CTV was in 2020, audio stock is scarce and never rising that rapidly, however consumption is excessive and rising quick. Advertisers want to meet up with shoppers, however there isn’t a lot audio stock accessible that may be focused and served programmatically.
The opposite premium media channel for programmatic to unlock is dwell sports activities, Inexperienced mentioned.
“I anticipate over the approaching years to see programmatic spot markets and sports activities change into greatest associates,” Inexperienced mentioned.
Dwell sports activities are counterintuitive for programmatic promoting. These spots are inclined to have a really excessive premium and go to sponsors, slightly than an open public sale. However, Inexperienced mentioned, “as a result of (dwell sports activities stock) is commonly scarce and sometimes extremely sought out by manufacturers, and it modifications in a short time, it truly is constructed for programmatic promoting.”
Media corporations aren’t capable of make the most of high-interest spots. As an illustration, when dwell sports activities go into additional time or have last-minute pleasure within the sport, the broadcasters aren’t capable of make the most of what can be very excessive curiosity in these spots, so the broadcasters typically default to replaying a sponsor’s advert or going to an area TV industrial.
That’s why Inexperienced cites the spot market – when advertisers have an opportunity to purchase broadcast spots on the fly, slightly than in upfront offers – as a chance for programmatic sports activities adverts.
The Google information
One other large alternative for The Commerce Desk would be the decline of Google’s market dominance.
The results of Google’s advert tech antitrust trial is unknown, so no one can forecast how Google shall be compelled to alter its practices and even divest elements of its enterprise.
“However no matter what occurs, I consider we’ll win,” Inexperienced mentioned.
For one factor, Google has been deprioritizing its third-party advert tech and advert community. Progress for that enterprise isn’t simply slowing however has really turned adverse this yr.
“If I have been in Sundar’s sneakers [Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai, that is], I’d deprioritize it, too,” Inexperienced added. Google’s high-margin progress in search, YouTube, cloud infrastructure and AI are extra compelling than its comparatively low-margin advert community.
The Commerce Desk has “managed to win in an unfair market” set by Google, he mentioned. However Google goes to stage the taking part in discipline, “whether or not that’s from authorities or simply by their very own selecting as a result of the risk-reward just isn’t price it.”
The Commerce Desk has outperformed the Google DSP, with year-over-year progress of greater than 20% in each quarter going again greater than two years, even whereas Google’s advert tech enterprise declined. And Inexperienced mentioned it ought to solely get simpler because the DOJ trials unfold.
“I’m very excited to see the result, and I believe we win it doesn’t matter what,” he mentioned.
