Channel 4 in the U.K. is launching interactive TV advertising.
Working with Innovid, the first interactive ads will be accessible via Roku boxes this month.
Advertisers involved in the test include Xbox, Alzheimer’s Research UK, and Burberry. The interactive ads will give viewers a choice about which creative they want to see and give them an opportunity to watch additional content or even click-to-buy products being advertised.
Channel 4 is additionally launching ispon, a suite of interactive digital sponsorship formats on TV with Innovid.
“We were the first broadcaster in the UK to launch interactive ads on our TV player back in 2011 with Innovid so we’re excited to exclusively introduce the next game changer to the digital TV market,” said David Amodio, digital leader at Channel 4. “Viewing behavior is evolving with a broader choice of content platforms than ever before – but viewers still gravitate to their favorite screen, the telly. By extending our interactive suite to the big screen, advertisers are now able to uniquely interact with our young, proactive audience across all screens.”
Channel 4’s digital strategy yields consistent revenue growth with digital revenues up +30% in 2015. The on-going roll out of programmatic and data-targeted ad solutions now represents 70% of total digital advertising revenues.
"We truly believe premium, long form television content will be viewed on a large screen and the data shows viewers believe that as well,” added Tal Chalozin, cofounder and chief technology officer at Innovid. “This time around, the large screen is smarter, personalized and more engaging than ever and we are thrilled to partner with Channel 4 to bring the best innovation to connected devices marketing for the first time at such scale to the British television landscape."
