LG launches Innovation Lab for connected TV advertising solutions

As more television viewership shifts from broadcast and cable platforms to streaming, and with more of those streamers willing to watch content supported by advertisements, electronics company LG feels now is the right time to figure out new and exciting ways to deliver better targeted messaging to those users.

On Wednesday, the South Korea electronics manufacturer announced it was forming a new team that is focused on exploring new ways to help advertisers deliver their messaging in ways that will increase reach and engagement across streaming platforms and lead to better targeted campaigns.

The Innovation Lab will fall under the purview of LG Ad Solutions, the company’s dedicated ad-focused team, with the mission of developing “more personalized, engaging, and effective advertising experiences” that will benefit LG’s own webOS streaming platform and the industry by large.

“From planning and scheduling to segmentation, personalization, delivery, and reporting there are many new technologies at our disposal, which create opportunities to evolve the ad business,” Chief Technology Officer Dave Rudnick, who will oversee the Innovation Lab, said in a statement. “This is why we created Innovation Labs — to test new strategies and collaborate with companies, startups, and technologies in a simulated ecosystem, enabling us to validate these models before integrating them into our business. We aim to push the boundaries of CTV advertising and redefine how viewers interact with content and ads while making the experience as seamless and engaging as possible.”

The formation of the Innovation Lab comes at a time when streaming has — for the most part — overtaken traditional broadcast and cable television platforms as the preferred method to watch video content in the United States, a trend that is accelerating in other countries as well.

While live events like sports and news still draw immense viewership to linear television, streaming has proven its worth when it comes to on-demand content like scripted TV series and movies. As prices for services like Netflix, Disney’s Hulu and Paramount Global’s Paramount Plus steadily increase each year, streamers are taking advantage of lower-priced options where the cost of the service is subsidized through advertisements.

Related: Streamers open to ads if it saves them cash, Hub survey reveals

“With over 93 percent of people reachable via CTV (connected TV) and over 63 percent now leaning into advertising-supported models versus subscription models, now is the time to see what is possible in CTV environments — and we are going to lead the way,” Rudnick said. “This initiative marks a significant step forward for LG Ad Solutions as we continue to innovate in the rapidly evolving CTV landscape. With Innovations Labs, we’re pushing the industry to deliver next-generation advertising and user experiences.”

LG Ad Solutions is one of several business sectors formed by a streaming TV platform that offers third parties access to unique data and insight from the company’s own equipment. LG says it has around 40 million users of its smart TVs in the United States and over 165 million users around the world, making it one of the leading TV manufacturers and one of the biggest collectors of direct data from connected TV platforms in the world.

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