Branded Content Agency Started by A+E Networks

A+E Networks said it is started a multiplatform content and social media agency.

With 30-second commercials so easy for viewers to zip or zap, advertisers are looking for other ways to reach consumers. As demand for branded content, integrations and social media campaign have grown, TV programmers ave started to move into the space to take advantage of their production know-how and to recapture that portion of clients marketing dollars.

NBCUniversal, Viacom, Turner and Scripps Networks Interactive are just a few of the big programmers that have formed production units that work with marketers to create content for TV, online and social media.

A+E says its unit will be a full-service agency supporting brands, shows, advertising and distribution partners. It will focus on on content creation, distribution, measurement and audience development for A+E Networks as well as branded content partners.

The studio will be located at 100 Dean Street in Brooklyn, and is being called 45th & Dean.

It will be run by Paul Greenberg, who continues as executive VP and general manager of A+E’s FYI Network. The agency has hired Shannon King as senior VP content partnerships & social media. Also joining the agency is Todd Pellegrino as senior VP, video content.

A+E Networks had lower income in the fourth quarter, according to The Walt Disney Co., which owns 50% of A+E. Advertising revenue was down and programming costs were up. A+E was also hurt by the conversion of the H2 channel to Viceland.

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.