Channel 4, ITV and Sky, in collaboration with Comcast Advertising, have announced their intention to launch a groundbreaking advertising marketplace, that will allow easy access to a premium on demand and streaming inventory through a single campaign for the very first time.
The move, designed to super charge the breadth of brands advertising on TV, will bring together addressable inventory from all three sales houses into a single marketplace. This will enable new-to-TV advertisers a direct, simple way to access premium video content.
For the first time, small to medium sized businesses will be empowered to access and purchase addressable inventory to run a single campaign across the three broadcaster sales houses – with biddable pricing and more tools – leveraging the scale and quality of programming and audiences across Channel 4 Sales, ITV Media and Sky Media. Providing simplified access across the three portfolios will make addressable TV inventory accessible for businesses that are used to buying their own media in social and digital environments.
Building on the rich heritage of collaboration between the broadcasters, the marketplace, which is set to launch in 2026, will be powered by Comcast’s Universal Ads platform and FreeWheel’s technology.
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The broadcasters are also in discussions to simplify the purchase of addressable inventory for media agencies. This includes exploring the potential of a joint agency-facing solution, based on ITV’s Planet V technology.
Priya Dogra, chief advertising, group data and new revenue officer, Sky, said: “In today’s fast-evolving media landscape, we strongly believe success will require collaboration, simplification, and innovation. In partnership with ITV and Channel 4, and following the successful US launch of Comcast’s Universal Ads platform, we are excited to bring this to the UK and with it, the opportunity to open up TV advertising to new brands. Building on this innovation, we also want to simplify TV trading for established brands and agencies and look forward to exploring potential opportunities with ITV and Channel 4 to use Planet V.”
Kelly Williams, managing director, commercial, ITV said: “As a TV industry, it is important that we collaborate to make television easy to plan, buy and measure for our established customers as well as the huge potential of new to TV brands. Both of these initiatives, this new marketplace for SME’s and Planet V for agencies, represent a very exciting future.”
Rak Patel, chief commercial officer, Channel 4, added: “This marketplace underlines what sets TV apart from all other media: its ability to collaborate at scale. By uniting the power of Channel 4, ITV and Sky through a single marketplace, we’re creating a new home for premium video while accelerating our Fast Forward strategy to become the first public service streamer.”
Thomas Bremond, Managing Director, Comcast Advertising, International, concluded: “We are excited to work with the UK’s premier broadcasters to offer advertisers a simplified way to access premium video, powered by Comcast’s Universal Ads platform. The collaborations across ITV, Channel 4 and Sky showcases the industry’s commitment to bringing together tech, media and data to offer greater efficiency and effectiveness to TV advertising.”
The collaboration between ITV, Channel 4 and Sky represents a major development in television advertising, offering SMEs a self-serve, powerful tool to enhance their marketing efforts.
Key features will include:
- One campaign, multiple broadcasters: For the first time advertisers can buy, measure, and report a single campaign across all the sales houses.
- TV unlocked: A user-friendly interface made specifically for SMEs and digital- native advertisers that makes buying addressable advertising straightforward and efficient, meaning the for the first time, new-to-TV brands can access the scale, trust, and creative power of TV.
- Focus on Outcomes: Tools and analytics to help brands measure and optimise their advertising performance.
- Transparency and Quality: Commitment to high standards of TV advertising, providing clear metrics and reliable results.
