Shantel
Key Takeaways
- Gracenote, a content solutions business unit of Nielsen, has entered into a commercial agreement with A+E Networks EMEA to advance its Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV (FAST) offerings.
- By leveraging Gracenote’s rich metadata, IDs, and imagery, A+E Networks EMEA ensures that its programming on channels like Inside Crime, Mystery TV, and World War TV, available on Amazon Freevee in the UK, can be easily discovered and watched by viewers.
- The partnership aims to maximize engagement and improve advertising monetization opportunities for A+E Networks EMEA’s award-winning factual and entertainment programming.
Introduction
Gracenote, a content solutions business unit of Nielsen, is collaborating with A+E Networks EMEA, a leading TV media company, to enhance its Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV (FAST) offerings through a new commercial agreement. By leveraging Gracenote’s comprehensive metadata, IDs, and imagery, A+E Networks EMEA aims to ensure that its valuable programming on channels such as Inside Crime, Mystery TV, and World War TV, available on Amazon Freevee in the UK, can be easily discovered and accessed by viewers. This strategic partnership will enable A+E Networks EMEA to drive engagement on its FAST offerings from launch and optimize advertising monetization for its factual and entertainment content.
Addressing Content Navigation Challenges in FAST Services
As consumers have increasingly diverse options for accessing entertainment content, Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV (FAST) services have gained popularity due to their familiar programming without cost or subscription commitments. However, these services often face challenges in effective content navigation, search, and discovery. If curated content available on FAST channels cannot be easily found within a streaming aggregator’s user interface, engagement and monetization opportunities may be lost.
To overcome these challenges, A+E Networks EMEA previously provided descriptive metadata for its programming to downstream aggregation platforms. With the help of Gracenote’s Distribution Service, the network can now enhance the discoverability of its FAST channels and content through the use of descriptive metadata, program imagery, and connected IDs provided by Gracenote.
Enabling Discoverability and Engagement
Vikram Kulkarni, VP of Strategic Initiatives, EMEA at Gracenote, highlighted the importance of addressing content discovery challenges in FAST services and emphasized Gracenote’s expertise in metadata and its role in ensuring A+E Networks’ valuable content is easily findable and watchable on their new UK FAST channels. Gracenote’s involvement is expected to drive viewer engagement and facilitate natural monetization of the content.
A+E Networks EMEA is a leading media network with a global portfolio of popular brands, including HISTORY®, Crime+Investigation®, HISTORY2®, and UK free-to-air BLAZE®. It reaches 58 million homes across 100 countries and has been entertaining and inspiring audiences for over 20 years by telling compelling stories.
Gracenote, as a content solutions business unit of Nielsen, provides entertainment metadata, content IDs, and related offerings to creators, distributors, and platforms worldwide. Its technology enables advanced content navigation and discovery capabilities, allowing individuals to easily connect with their favorite TV shows, movies, music, and sports, while also providing powerful content analytics to simplify complex business decisions.
