Netflix has unveiled new opportunities for advertisers on its platform, including single-title sponsorships and sponsorship of its first live sports event.
The streaming platform also announced plans to launch a binge ad format later this year, according to Peter Naylor, the company’s vice president of global advertising sales.
Frito-Lay’s Smartfood popcorn brand will serve as the single-title sponsor for the next season of reality hit ‘Love Is Blind.’
The streaming platform will also broadcast the Netflix Cup, which pits Formula 1 drivers from its ‘Drive to Survive’ documentary series against PGA golfers in a match play golf tournament, with T-Mobile and Nespresso as sponsors.
A planned binge ad format will serve a 30- or 60-second brand spot among viewers’ ‘binge’ of several episodes before playing a commercial-free episode.
“At a time when more than 80 per cent of our ad-supported members watch for two hours or more, this product will reward viewers and allow your brands to stand out,” adds Naylor.
The new ad formats and sponsorship opportunities join an existing top 10 ad format that puts brand media placements into the top viewed shows on the platform.
“Advertisers tell me all the time they want to be culturally relevant and have the ability to connect with audiences. Well, if you want to be culturally relevant, there’s no better place to do it then having your ads nestled within the top shows that everybody is talking about.” said Naylor.
By sponsoring the Netflix Cup, brands will be able to reach both racing and golf fans as the streamer makes its first foray into live sports.
The sponsorships will be integrated into the broadcast in a way that’s ‘natural and holistic,’ according to Naylor, and won’t include traditional 15- and 30-second ads.
For Nespresso, the sponsorship is an opportunity for a brand in ‘household penetration build mode,’ said Jessica Padula, Nespresso’s vice president of marketing and interim vice president for sustainability.
“That’s a fascinating place to be in as a marketer to say, ‘Okay, I gotta do something big, I got to make a statement.
“What better way to do it than with something that’s the first time and exciting and really a cultural moment that we can associate ourselves with in a way that just introduces people to a different side [of the brand] than they expected.” adds Padula.
