Chris Pfaff moderated an expert session – ‘Removing the Friction of Content Discovery on CTV’ – at the (virtual) Streaming Media Connect conference, on November 14, 2024, with the following panelists:

Chris Rodriguez, CCO – Revry

Monica Williams, SVP, Digital Products & Operations, Content Distribution – NBCUniversal

Gatsby Frimpong, Co-Founder & CEO – Gatsby TV

Katrina Kowalski, SVP, International Content Programming and Acquisitions – Pluto TV

The premise of the session was that today’s streaming providers deliver endless amounts of content, which can overwhelm viewers who are simply looking for something to watch. The content discovery process often takes far longer than viewers are willing to wait. FAST channels have the power to redefine content discoverability by using data to serve customers the content they want to watch and help them find new content based on prior viewing habits. FAST platforms have a vast amount of data available to them, but only a small amount of it is being used to its full potential. Incorporating viewership data into the content discoverability process can remove the pain points that have bubbled up in the new streaming landscape, lead to more engagement with the content, and open up more opportunities for advertisers to reach their target audiences. This session looks at the success of genre channels and provides attendees with insight into how they help their viewers find their content faster.

You can watch the full session at:

Chris Pfaff moderated an all-star session – ‘Successful Strategies for Growing and Monetizing Your Streaming Service’ – on the virtual Streaming Media Connect conference, produced by Streaming Media Magazine, on February 22, 2024 that discussed strategies for curating content, maintaining audiences, and growing new channels.

Joining Chris were panelists Rene Santaella, Chief Digital & Streaming Officer, Estrella Media; Matt Farina, Senior Vice President, Content Distribution, NBCUniversal; Eric Sorensen, Director, Streaming Video Research, Parks Associates; Smriti Sharma, Head, Consumer Insights, Publishers Clearing House, and Julia Moonves, SVP, Advertising Sales & Brand Partnerships, pocket.watch.

You can view the entire panel session at:

Chris Pfaff moderated the virtual panel ‘Targeting, Measuring, and Scaling Connected TV Advertising’ on February 20, 2024 for Streaming Media Connect, the virtual conference series produced by Streaming Media Magazine.

Discussion of CTV’s rapid growth centered around the recent Walmart acquisition of Vizio. Joining Chris were panelists Aneessa Steilen, VP, Media & Distribution Marketing, Vevo; Jack Mollins, SVP, Advertising Sales, Atmosphere.TV; Jennifer Monson, VP, Ad Sales, Fubo; Tim Ware, Senior Vice President of Programmatic Sales and Revenue, Sales, Crackle Connex, and Mark Loughney, Senior Consultant, Hub Entertainment Research.

The full panel can be viewed at:

Chris Pfaff moderated an all-star panel – ‘Life in the FAST Lane’ – as a pre-MIPCOM virtual session on the Media Meet & Greet community, on the Deal Room platform, on Monday, October 10, 2022.

The speakers included:

• Jonathan French, senior vice president, sales and business development, MuxIP
• Larry Baird, chief marketing officer, Crackle Plus
• Richard Young, director of syndication, Little Dot Studios
• John T. Wells, CEO, Dooya Media Group

The session discussed the accelerated adoption of Free Ad-Supported Streaming Television, or FAST, models, and how advertisers and brands are positioning their content for this growing sector.

Chris Pfaff (upper left); Larry Baird (upper center): Richard Young (upper right); Jonathan French (lower left), John Wells (lower right)

You can watch the entire ‘Life in the FAST Lane’ panel at:

At the first-ever Streaming Media East event held in Boston, Chris Pfaff moderated the ‘Future of Advertising’ session on May 24, 2022 with the following experts:

Brian Kline, president, Penthera

Jessica Masters, Director of East Coast Sales – Roku

Tim Ware, VicePresident of Platform Partnerships and Sales – Crackle Plus

You can watch the full panel at:

https://youtu.be/uq4Gq10mmIY?list=PLcSb1s2U3uyCXba5dvCf6sEnphLdTjq1q

Session Description:

SSAI. CSAI. DLA. FAST. AVOD. It’s a veritable alphabet soup of advertisingtechnologies and models, but they all share one thing in common: opening up a new world of TV advertising leveraging technologies that are only possible in streaming. This panel of industry leaders talks about what’s working, what’s not, and where the smart money says OTT advertising is headed.

(Left to right): Jessica Masters, Roku; Brian Kline, Penthera, Tim Ware, Crackle Plus

(Left to right): Jessica Masters, Roku; Brian Kline, Penthera, Tim Ware, Crackle Plus, Chris Pfaff, Chris Pfaff Tech Media LLC