Cablefax The Magazine - July 2013 - 9

2013 Top Ops Awards
CABLE TECHNOLOGY AWARD
Viamedia
OK, so Viamedia isn't a technology irm per se. But its savvy
application of technology to step up the traditional advertising
game would make anyone in Silicon Valley proud. With a
24/7 operations center in Lexington, KY, Viamedia's real-time
monitoring boasts a 99.9% run rate and includes headend
testing every single minute. That monitoring covers 130 zones
in 57 markets, representing a whopping 5,848 networks. And
its multiplatform ad insertion capabilities (in partnership with
Invidi) continue to set the bar. Viamedia works with 41 distributors,
big and small. So, yeah... we feel pretty good about a
tech award for these guys.
" The biggest thing is our lexibility and technical integration, "
says Viamedia CEO Jeff Carter. " The level of sophistication runs
from the hardest market in the country-New York-to some
extremely small markets in some extremely small DMAs. "
And while Viamedia has many small op clients, it works with
some pretty large MSOs as well, including Time Warner Cable
and Verizon-and it also plays in the digital pre-roll universe
with clients like Google. With second screen devices proliferating,
Viamedia's got its hands in everything. " As the industry
becomes more fragmented and more agnostic about the device
that an advertiser can be seen on, we're going to have to be
able to accommodate all those devices, and we're going to
have to be device agnostic as well, " says Carter.
Carter cautions, however, that when it comes to multiplatform,
the learning curve continues for the industry and for advertisers.
" Technology changes so fast, I'm not sure we could
ever say that we're ready to go, " he says. " But we're in a
position to make ready to go. All of these changes in technology
require a tremendous amount of work on our parts, our
vendors' parts, advertisers' parts. " The bottom line: Viamedia
bases all its decision on what advertisers want. Period. " You
have to igure out how best to serve the advertiser, and once
you get that going, then the other pieces kind of start falling
into place, " he says.
* Viamedia's 41 video partners include Verizon FiOS, WOW!,
SureWest, CenturyLink, Cincinatti Bell, Eatel, Frontier Communications,
Blue Ridge Communications, Jackson Energy,
MI Connection, Service Electric, Grande Communications,
RCN, EPB, BTES, BVU, among others.
* Viamedia is the largest non-MVPD
100% independent company offering
full turnkey advertising sales
representation.
* The company employs approx 500
across 32 states.
CableFAX: The Magazine
July 2013
Viamedia's advertiser focus has helped it to hone its technology
and ine-tune its entire technology strategy. And the
company pitches its close ties to Madison Avenue as a factor
that beneits clients of any size. " We have the same fundamental
research and marketing and technical capabilities in
Jackson, Tennessee, as we do in New York, " says Carter.
" And when we turn on a system, that happens from day one.
There's not a ramp up period or a learning period. There's a
plug and play. We have that expertise. " Viamedia was actually
the irst ad rep irm to insert an ad over an IP stream (with
SureWest in Sacramento) and the irst to sell ads on a set-top
box level on a DMA basis (with Verizon in Providence, R.I.).
Operators we contacted sang Viamedia's praises, especially
when it comes to ofloading the complicated ad business
so they can focus on their own day-to-day operations.
" With Viamedia's company-wide commitment to advertising-client
research, in-depth experience of the industry and
centralized trafic approach, we feel our advertising clients
are getting a well-rounded solution to help their businesses
grow, " says Peter C. Smith, WOW!'s svp, programming &
advertising sales. Viamedia handles WOW!'s advertising
in 15 different markets. Jaime Montes, SureWest's senior
manager, content acquisition & digital TV, says Viamedia
just " makes sense " and " inserts seamlessly in both our
analog and IPTV networks. "
Of course, Carter says challenges remain in hot areas
like VOD dynamic ad insertion. " There's a lot of talk on VOD
pre-roll, " he says. " There's a lot of interest there. But there
are signiicant challenges because a lot of the programmers
haven't made those pre-rolls available... That situation has to
be worked out. " Once that happens, Carter predicts audience
expansion as VOD evolves into more of an " incremental
value play. " As for the future, Carter points to all the new
players trying to invade cable's turf, including Apple and its
rumored multichannel service, Microsoft as the Xbox shifts
to a media hub and, of course, Google as it rolls out iber in
various cities. " I think we're in for a pretty fun ride over the
next ive or six years, " says Carter. We don't doubt it.
- Michael Grebb
cablefaxmag.com
9
http://www.cablefaxmag.com
Cablefax The Magazine - July 2013

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