Opera Expands Ad Platform to Connected TVs

As OTT players continue to compete with traditional cable for ad dollars, Opera Mediaworks has announced its next-gen advertising platform for connected TVs dubbed “AdMarvel” and touted to offer a “rich ad-serving platform combined with sophisticated ad exchange, ad serving and ad management functionality on connected TVs.” The idea is to connect content publishers and developers with buyers seeking to embed pre- and post-roll ads in various online content—at particular price points.

 

Opera is already the largest mobile ad platform, so its move into the connected TV space could raise the stakes and draw even more dollars away from traditional channels—although it remains to be seen how much of an impact AdMarvel will have in the near term. Early AdMarvel parrtners include video ad networks Brightroll, TubeMogul, Videology, iVdopia, SpotXchange, as well as Opera Mediaworks’ Mobile Theory premium ad network as the company looks to expand video advertising across the AdMarvel publisher base into connected TVs. Opera Mediaworks already claims to serve more than 13K mobile sites and applications, managing more than 60 billion ad impressions per month and has enabled more than $400 million of publisher revenue in 2012.

 

“As connected TV households worldwide reach critical mass in the coming couple of years, the TV screen will become the next frontier in delivering relevant advertising to consumers,” said Opera CEO Mahi de Silva. “Opera Mediaworks provides the necessary technology and expertise to publishers and advertisers in meeting their goals on mobile, tablet and, now, connected TV.”