Kroger opens data marketplace for connected TV and streaming ads

Making Kroger data available for streaming video and CTV buys comes at a time when interest in the medium by CPG advertisers appears to be spiking. A recent report by Pathmatics found CPG advertisers increased spending by 39% on over-the-top TV between the first and second quarter, faster than any other segments. This came even as some CPG brands were pulling back on linear TV spending measured by iSpot.tv in the face of rising costs and margin pressures. CPG became the biggest OTT spending segment measured by Pathmatics last quarter.

“Streaming is the No. 1 way people consume TV today,” Pratt said. The expansion of the private marketplace to connect with premium CTV inventory “has been in the plans for quite for some time given our interest in holding media dollars accountable” and reducing wasted ad impressions, she said. But the move is particularly timely given how quickly CPG ad dollars are migrating toward CTV.

While Kroger data previously had facilitated CTV buying and performance measurement via a relationship with Roku, this expansion opens a much wider array of high-quality inventory for use, Pratt said. Creating a marketplace that’s demand-side platform-agnostic also opens it up for the widest possible array of advertisers, she said.