News
ViacomCBS
UK appoints
Rose as COO
ViacomCBS Networks UK has
appointed Sarah Rose as chief
operating officer, responsible for
the day-to-day running of ViacomCBS’s
business in the UK. She will report
into Maria Kyriacou,
president, ViacomCBS
Networks UK and
Australia.
Rose will have
oversight of all UK
business functions
including operations,
legal and business
affairs, finance, HR,
communications,
research,
broadcasting
technology and
VIS UK. Working
alongside director
of programmes, Ben
Frow and chief commercial officer,
Arran Tindall, Rose will also play an
important role in strategic planning
across ViacomCBS’s UK channel
portfolio, which includes free-to-air
network Channel 5 and pay TV brands
MTV, Comedy Central and Nickelodeon.
Externally, Rose will be responsible
for managing industry and regulatory
relationships, including with Ofcom.
Rose joins ViacomCBS from Channel
4, where she was most recently
chief consumer and strategy officer,
DAZN launches on GigaTV
Sports streaming service DAZN is
now available on multiplay telco
Vodafone’s GigaTV platform in
Germany. The companies say it is
the first of multiple partnerships
integrations anticipated between
them as they respond to customer
demand for frictionless, richer
viewing experiences.
The DAZN app has launched
on the GigaTV 4K Box for cable
TV customers, and the GigaTV Net
streaming box for viewers accessing
TV and video over the Internet.
responsible for Corporate
Strategy, Consumer Insight
and Data Science. She
previously worked in a
number of roles across the
business, joining originally
to launch Channel 4’s All4
VoD service, then moving
on to lead Commercial
and Business Development
before becoming director of consumer
insight.
Rose started her career at ITV, where
she progressed to general manager of
ITV Digital Channels, responsible for
digital channels ITV2,
ITV3 and ITV4.
“Sarah has a
wealth of expertise in
broadcast media and
proven experience
in successfully
driving companies
forward,” commented
Kyriacou. “This is a
key role in our UK
senior leadership
team, overseeing
the entirety of our
operations and
ensuring that we
function at optimum
efficiency. I’m delighted to welcome her
on board at what is an exciting time for
the business, as we continue to evolve
our offering in a fast-moving media
landscape.”
“I have loved my time at Channel 4
from the first minute to the last, but am
ready for a new challenge and I am so
excited to have the opportunity to join
a business of ViacomCBS’s international
stature, and to help steer the growth of
its iconic channel and digital brands in
the UK,” added Rose.
During the 2020-21 season, DAZN
will show 45 Bundesliga matches
on Fridays, Sunday lunchtimes and
Mondays for the 2020-21 season in
Germany, Austria and Switzerland. In
the UEFA Champions League, DAZN
will stream 110 out of 138 matches.
The following season, DAZN becomes
the new ‘Home of Live Football’ in
Germany. Coverage of the Bundesliga
dramatically increases to 106
matches (103 exclusive) for four
seasons and 122 (121 exclusive)
out of 138 UEFA Champions League
matches for three seasons.
Survey: 77% of UK
prefer AVoD over
SVoD
Video advertising platform
Unruly has released a study that
investigates consumer attitudes and
consumption habits around connected TV
(CTV) during the Covid-19 pandemic.
CTV consumption is on the rise in
the UK, with previous research by Unruly
showing that 54% of UK consumers are
spending more time watching CTV content
since the start of the pandemic. But as CTV
usage continues to accelerate, marketers
are trailing behind with their media plans.
One of the biggest takeaways from the
research is that more relevant targeting
and greater personalisation mean CTV ads
perform better than the UK TV average
across key indicators. Compared to the
average UK TV viewer, after seeing an ad on
TV, UK ad-supported CTV users are:
• 55% more likely to tell a friend about
a brand;
• 42% more likely to buy a product;
• 44% more likely to visit a store or
website;
• 47% more likely to search for a brand;
• 39% more likely to have an improved
opinion of the brand.
As the pandemic has rapidly accelerated
the growth of CTV, it’s more important
than ever before that brands understand
and embrace the medium. Almost a quarter
of UK consumers have tried a new adsupported
streaming service since the
outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Of
those, 74% say they will continue to do so.
Additional key findings include:
• 82% of the UK population now have
access to CTV content through various
devices;
• 77% of UK consumers say they would
prefer to watch their favourite TV
programmes for free with ads rather than
pay for an ad-free experience;
• 57% of UK consumers plan to reduce
the amount they pay for TV services
—27% plan to reduce the number of paid
for streaming services they use, and a
fifth (21%) plan to cancel their cable TV;
Over half (54%) of Brits are actively seeking
ways to watch TV programmes and films
free of charge.
“UK consumers’ pivot to CTV is an
opportunity for brands to reach audiences
at scale in a highly targeted, personalised
way that has, until now, not been possible,”
said Rebecca Waring, global VP of insights
and solutions at Unruly.
8 EUROMEDIA