Tag: Ask Skip

Skip explains why ad tech keeps selling simplicity while profiting from complexity, especially in CTV where buyers face fragmented supply chains, inconsistent measurement, duplicated reach, and too many dashboards. He makes the case that complexity protects vendor margins and dilutes…

Skip explains why marketing still treats attribution like fact even though consumer behavior is increasingly hard to measure. Attribution still helps reduce uncertainty, but too many companies use it as proof of causality, which pushes budgets toward channels that are…

Skip sounds off on how last-click attribution pushed streaming companies to overvalue performance marketing and underinvest in brand. Brand marketing creates demand, while performance marketing harvests it, and streaming services have trained consumers to chase discounts, bundles, trials, and promos…

Skip examines why the advertising industry continues selling precision targeting despite growing signal loss and attribution challenges across digital media. The column argues that streaming and CTV are pushing advertisers toward probabilistic measurement, contextual relevance, and broader business outcomes instead…

Skip explains that streaming services prioritize episodic content because it drives longer engagement, more ad inventory, and stronger retention than films. Shows extend viewing sessions, create repeat entry points, and generate multiple monetization cycles, while movies typically deliver a single,…

Skip examines a Netflix exec's recent claim that Paramount’s $6B in projected merger synergies are “code for job cuts,” arguing the framing is designed for regulatory and competitive impact rather than financial precision.

Skip confirms AI’s full entry into the media economy, competing directly with publishers, platforms, and streaming services for brand dollars. Conversational AI captures sustained intent and high-density first-party signal, turning interaction data into premium inventory and shifting leverage to whoever…

Skip warns that agentic advertising, despite the buzz, isn’t a guaranteed win for publishers unless they actively shape how their inventory is defined and valued. While AI agents promise scalability and discoverability for high-impact formats, the risk is repeating programmatic's…

Ask Skip breaks down why brands are acting like content companies, arguing it's less about strategy and more about surviving in a fight for attention. With limited screen time and endless noise, content is the cheapest way to stay culturally…

Ask Skip calls out the overreliance on AI as a fix for content discovery, arguing it's a cop-out for the lack of programming strategy. AI can help organize and personalize, but it can't replace the need for editorial vision and…