Media giants including Netflix, Disney, NBCUniversal and Warner Bros. Discovery will try to charm advertisers during their annual Upfronts events this week.
Media giants are making their annual pitches to advertisers this week against the backdrop of significant disruption in the industry. Meanwhile, digital advertising spend during the Upfronts and Newfronts — which take place a few weeks ahead of the traditional media events — is expected to increase nearly 32% to $16.45 billion this year, according to eMarketer.
Netflix ended last quarter with about 270 million global subscribers, riding a wave of password-sharing-freeloaders-turned-paying-customers during the past year. Warner Bros. Discovery, which is holding its presentation at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday, reported traditional TV advertising revenue fell 11% last quarter from a year earlier to about $2 billion. Streaming advertising revenue jumped 70%, but the overall number is much lower — just $175 million.