Nielsen’s Gracenote unit said it will help content owners launch free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channels by letting them distribute their programs along with Gracenotes metadata, which makes the channels and programming easier to discover and monetize.
Gracenote launched its FAST Program last year in Europe. It is expanding into the U.S. as more consumer limit the number of streaming services they subscribe to and increase their use of free FAST channels.
“Go-to-market complexity in the FAST ecosystem can slow the process of launching channels and getting content in front of entertainment-hungry viewers,” said Tim Cutting, chief revenue officer at Gracenote. “By removing obstacles for content owners in the U.S., the Gracenote FAST Program facilitates wider content distribution, better content discovery and deeper viewer engagement. Ultimately, this helps participants maximize ad monetization against their valuable content assets and position themselves for success now and into the future.”
By leveraging Gracenote’s FAST metadata management and distribution services, content owners can make their programs and FAST channels easily accessible to viewers on major streaming platforms around the world, the company said.
The Gracenote FAST Program provides an ingestible schedule with standardized date and time formats, enhanced merchandising assets such as synopses and imagery to help draw in viewers and expanded metadata coverage, with more data tags to make content more discoverable.
