Netflix, the streaming giant, has experienced a significant increase in upfront ad sales commitments, with a staggering 150% rise over the previous year. This surge in commitments includes investments from key categories such as consumer packaged goods (CPG), technology, entertainment, automotive, quick-service restaurants (QSR), and retail. According to a statement by Netflix seen by MARKETING-INTERACTIVE, the streaming platform has closed partnerships for several upcoming films and series, including popular titles like Squid Game, Wednesday, Outer Banks, Happy Gilmore 2, Ginny & Georgia, and Love is Blind. Additionally, Netflix has secured deals for live events such as WWE Raw and the Christmas Day NFL games.
The streaming giant’s advertising clients have expressed excitement about the highly engaged audience and the diverse and high-quality programming offered by Netflix. For instance, for the upcoming Season 3 of Bridgerton, Netflix has secured multiple international on-screen title sponsors, including Pure Leaf, Amazon Audible, Puig, Booking.com, Stella Artois, and Hilton. Moreover, Netflix recently partnered with renowned brands such as LVMH, COTY Gucci, Kaiku Caffee Latte, Aeromexico, Google, and Rakuten for the return of Emily in Paris.
In May, Netflix announced new opportunities for advertisers to buy ad space, leverage insights, and measure impact more effectively. The company has expanded its buying capabilities by allowing marketers to set up private 1:1 marketplace deals directly with Netflix. It has also introduced Google’s Campaign Manager 360 and Innovid for impression verification, along with extending its existing partnerships with Double Verify and Integral Ad Science for fraud and viewability verification in programmatic channels. Furthermore, Netflix is working towards including programmatic guarantee in its buying capabilities, with plans to extend programmatic private marketplace buys globally.
Netflix is also enhancing its measurement partnerships by extending its campaign performance measurement suite to include NielsenOne, Lucid (or Cint), EDO Inc., NCSolutions, Kantar, and Affinity Solutions for all buy types. The streaming platform has partnered with clean room suppliers Snowflake, InfoSum, and LiveRamp to create a secure and privacy-safe environment for its members and advertisers. Additionally, Netflix will be launching its in-house ad tech platform, which will be tested in Canada in November and globally launched in 2025.
The in-house ad tech platform aims to provide advertisers with valuable insights, new buying options, and improved impact measurement. This initiative aligns with Netflix’s continued growth and momentum of its ad-supported plan, which now boasts 40 million global monthly active users, a significant increase from five million a year ago. In fact, over 40% of all signups in countries with ads now come from the ad-supported plan, highlighting the success and popularity of this offering.
In related news, Netflix has recently inked a deal with Now TV to enhance entertainment offerings in Hong Kong and is set to launch its in-house ad tech platform by the end of 2025. However, there are concerns about Netflix’s decision to stop reporting subscriber numbers and how this might impact advertisers in the future. With its innovative strategies, expanding partnerships, and growing user base, Netflix continues to solidify its position as a leading player in the streaming and advertising industry.