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Ari Paparo
This podcast is brought to you by danads. This is Ari Paparo. Did you miss out on the incredible Danad Summit in New York? The event brought together over 180 ad tech experts to tackle the biggest challenges and opportunities facing our industry. Today I had the honor of kicking off the day with a keynote presentation on the current state of the advertising landscape. Want to hear my insights and predictions for the future? You're in luck. Recordings from the danaad subbits are being released and you can catch my keynote right now. Head over to the danads website@danads.com and find it under webinars. Another exciting news. Danads is already planning their next summit. If you'd like to sponsor the event or even be a speaker, registrations are now open, so check it out@danads.com welcome.
AdTech God
To the EdTech God Pod, your window into the world of advertising technology and the people behind it. I'm your host, AdTech God. Welcome to the EdTech Pod, where we connect with the entrepreneurs shaping our industry. Today, we're thrilled to welcome Shahar Oren, co founder, CRO and CMO of xco. Shahar currently leads global business development and marketing strategy for xco, which is a publisher video platform focused on driving video engagement and revenue for not just publishers, but beyond. XCO is also a sponsor of the ATG Slack community, so I wanted to disclose that before going into our chat. Shahar, I'm excited to have you here. Welcome to the EdTech Got Pod.
Shahar Oren
Thank you so much for having me.
AdTech God
Thank you, thanks for being here and thanks to Tammy for setting this up. I really appreciate the trust and thank you again for sponsoring the Slack community. I'm excited that you were one of the first so. So thank you for, for the support really early on.
Shahar Oren
We love it. It's such a, you know, a great opportunity to engage with this community that, you know, we love being part of it.
AdTech God
So jar every podcast guys, people, how they got into the industry, how they started and what brought them to the point today you're obviously a co founder and you're wearing many hats at xco. Can you give me a little bit of background as how you, you got to this point? What led you to know co founding.
Shahar Oren
Exco so I actually started my career on the editorial side of the industry. I was a journalist in Israel, which is where I'm from, and I did that for nearly 10 years and it really got to the point where I was asking myself, you know, what's my next move? How do I use this knowledge that I Have, you know, in a, in a new industry because I felt like I was kind of getting to the glass ceiling of where I was at. And I was lucky enough to meet the other founders of Exco. We're building technology that supports publishers and help them succeed. And you know, what's interesting is that initially it wasn't even adtech. It was more hub tech, you could say it was really a company that was aiming at building technology to then help publishers content be, you know, get more engagement, get people to spend more time with it, be more interactive. This was 2013, so it's really, you know, it's been a while and that's how we started. And what got us into adtech is actually because we've been working with publishers all of these years is really listening to publishers and understanding two key things. One was that video is the type of content that matters most to them. You know, it's how their readers consume content. It's what their advertisers want to pay for. And so video kind of, you know, we were in the world of content and interactive content, but video has really emerged as the most important. And the second was if we're not going to help publishers generate revenue directly, it's always going to be a nice to have. It's never going to be meaningful enough for them to really, you know, for real product, market fit. And that's how a few years ago we got into ad tech in the video space specifically. And it's been, you know, a huge success for us.
AdTech God
You know, looking at your profile, the company's been around for what, six years, seven years.
Shahar Oren
So six years since it's been xco. We had a different name in the beginning, so the company's 11 years old, but it's been XCO for six years. Yes.
AdTech God
How much have you seen change in the way, I guess, you know, video consumption has changed across your publisher network? And how have you seen the technology really evolve over, you know, the last few years to where, you know, there's improvements on product rollouts and monetization for these partners?
Shahar Oren
Yeah, it's changed dramatically. I mean, we just actually produced a report about how publishers are seeing and viewing video as part of their strategy was a partnership with their rebooting by Brian Morrissey. And we surveyed different companies in the industry and there was a lot of talk about, you know, that dreaded pivot to video that happened a few years ago and that, you know, a lot of publishers were then producing tons of video content, mostly for the walled gardens for social. They were spending lots and lots of budget on that and it wasn't really eventually bringing value to them. It may have gotten a lot of views, but it wasn't really in their control. And I think that's one of the most meaningful. Again from the non consumer side. You know, from the publisher's perspective, this is something that changed dramatically. Video strategies are still a huge focus. It's still something that every media company defines as a big priority. We actually saw that 80% of the company said they have an active video strategy that they invest in. But now it's a lot more of a holistic approach. It's something that both the editorial, product and revenue sides of the business are heavily involved in. And it's really serving a meaningful purpose again, both editorially and commercially. So I think that's a big change. And obviously from the consumer's perspective, there's a lot more vertical video. The type of content, the length of the content has changed. But from our perspective, it's really interesting to see kind of how it serves a different purpose for the media groups we work with.
AdTech God
Yeah, you know, you mentioned a lot about the length of the video, you know, vertical or not, or I think portrait or whatever, 300 by 250 size on a web, like all of that plays a huge role. Do you find that you get a lot of insights from existing clients as to how to better optimize those video units? Because I know, like on the podcast before we started, I told you, look, we aim for 30 minutes. Nobody listens to an hour podcast. Like unless you're someone major like Joe Rogan, nobody's listening and engaged for an hour. Everybody's engaged for 20 to 30 minutes. Their attention span drops off and the podcast is over. So recording for an hour is too much. Do you find the same thing on the video units that you have and on the ad durations? Is that something that you address and adjust over time?
Shahar Oren
A hundred percent. This is really one of the key principles that Tom Pack is my co founder and I have built XCO on. Is, you know that people don't necessarily engage with long form content even before we were doing video. And there need to be better ways to engage readers and consumers with content instead of going against their consumption habits. Going with their consumption habits and short form is, is one thing, vertical is another thing. We actually, you know, have a vertical player for the web because that's what people are consuming on social, you know, why not give it to them wherever they are? But to your point, in the beginning of your question, Listening to our customers, the partners we work with, is the only way that we really learn anything, you know, is just this is why we've been around for 11 years, is because we listen and we try to adapt our offering our products to what our customers actually need. And I think our industry is changing so quickly that it's really the only way.
AdTech God
What do you feel that, you know, xco, overall, what do you feel is the biggest milestone? Like, when did you reach the point with your co founders where you're sitting in a room and you looked at each other and be like, wow, we finally hit this number, we're making payroll, we're ready to expand, we are in a good spot now. Let's ramp it, let's grow our business.
Shahar Oren
I think it was, it must have been two years ago where we decided to kind of go with video as our key strategy. We had built a platform, we were in the market, but it was really about finding that differentiation, that unique value proposition that we bring to the market and going all the way with it. And it was kind of against, in a way, a lot of what, you know, some other vendors in the ad tech industry, the way they're seeing their business where we said, you know, we want to be very transparent. We want to do things right, we want to see ahead of trends that are going to come in, regulations that are going to come in, to really think of, you know, how this industry is going to look in a few years and to offer that to the partners that we work with and specifically to also say, you know, and that was a big differentiator for us and still is to this day, that a lot of the technology and the algorithms in this industry are not favoring publishers, they're not favoring the media owner. You know, they're. They're really kind of even sometimes going against them. And we want to do the opposite to really build technology that helps publishers be successful again. Video is how we do that, but, you know, could be translated to a lot of other things. And I think that's where things really started to shift for us. And that's where we also started to work with. And that's become our expertise with the big media groups in this industry who, you know, really identify with that approach, understand that approach, and, you know, appreciate us understanding the level of complexity of their business and what they're looking for.
AdTech God
Do you find that as you're working with these publishers and the, I guess, the sell side of the business and how you're working with, with the publisher side or the demand side of the business very different than the supply side of the business. Are you finding that those clear lines are becoming more and more vague as some of, I guess the DSPs are starting to incorporate both, you know, supply and demand strategies for their roadmap. I mean, a lot of the DSPs are now getting involved directly with publishers. Maybe not rolling out actual units, but definitely integrated directly and striking deals directly. Are you finding that plays a role with you or is it because your tech on page, you're not necessarily as impacted by those decisions?
Shahar Oren
I think, you know, that while the lines are blurring, maybe in some areas, you know, we see the demand and supply sides of the business not collaborating as much as we think they could. You know, sometimes we actually think that they could have collaborated more or they could have seen each other's perspective and point of view and needs more. And you know, there, there are a lot of forums that bring the two sides of the industry together and you know, it's starting to take shape and there's more conversation and the blurred lines as you said. But I think there's still a lot of, you know, suspicion is the right word or, you know, but they're still not necessarily kind of thinking of the other side that's happening. And that's something that we try, you know, for example, we work with a lot of big news oriented media groups, Hearst newspapers and your Post and Nasdaq, many others. And the demand side sees news as a challenge, you know, especially in a year like this where, you know, after election year, it's something that we really try to bridge the gap between the two sides and to say, you know, look at news as an opportunity, look at it as, you know, how engaging it can be. You know, something that's super credible, that, you know, is really an opportunity for your brand to actually look better versus, you know, the fear and the concern of appearing next to a lot of negative news. That's just one example. But I think there are a lot of places where that your sides can come closer together.
AdTech God
Yeah, I think as much as news is polarizing, so is the, you know, supply and demand side is polarizing. Sometimes it's, it's unfortunate because there's, I understand the logic behind, you know, demand side platforms going direct to publishers and providing potentially higher net CPMs to these publishers. I get it. But I think the potential loss of revenue by not having that competition running directly in an SSP exists as well. And so losing that control from a publisher and handing it over to demand side platform is is something that I think about a lot. Like if I was a publisher, do I want to give it directly to the demand partner or do I want a middleman who may take a cut, who does take a percentage and that's fine, but I'm controlling my CPMs and I'm controlling everything and I'm controlling my data. And so I think I'm a little bit more skeptical of all of these demand and supply side strategies. I don't know if it's the best for the industry. It might be the best for the advertiser, but it may not be best for the publisher. And I guess people have to just make the right educated decision.
Shahar Oren
Agree. I think control and transparency are eventually that's the name of the game and publishers don't have enough control and you know, need to feel that they control their fate a lot more.
AdTech God
So yeah, definitely. AI has been a really big topic, comes up a lot. We all talk about it. I saw a post the other day that said, you know, it's not whether AI is going to impact our industry. AI is already here and it's already changing the way we do things. Is AI a part of XCO's, you know, product roadmap is already a part of what you're, you're providing to clients? I'd love to hear a little bit more about that.
Shahar Oren
Of course, AI is a huge part of what we do. It's actually, you know, it's specifically machine learning that we build a lot of our different products and our technology on. And it really is coming from that place of, you know, the sophistication that it can offer versus, you know, a lot of parts of this industry that are still based on rule based logic or a lot of manual work as well. And so our ad server, our monetization engine is fully machine learning based. That's one of our, our unique value propositions, you know, and the scale and again the sophistication that it can offer. But it's not just that, it's also we use, you know, large language models for our video content recommendation engine to help publishers scale video across their site, you know, in a way where they don't have to manually match a video to a page every time because there's a sophisticated model that scans through their library and matches the right video to the page. And I agree with you, AI is not the future, it's the present and it's here. And you know, the publishers that we work with, I feel like there was a lot of fear and a lot of concern about it initially, especially in the newsroom, but it's also starting to turn around and it's starting to streamline a lot of mundane daily tasks for publishers, for us as well. You know, on our marketing team. For example, I just saw an article today that OpenAI is paying Doc Desh Meredith $16 million a year to license their content to use in their engine. And so I think it's definitely going in a positive direction. And there's a lot less concern, still concern, which is legit, but a lot less than it used to be.
AdTech God
A lot of my guests I've spoken to and I've asked this question too, they've all talked about, you know, AI being a part of what they are building or already have in place. And to me it's, it's really a tool, it's not a replacement. I think in the beginning the joke was AI is going to take all of our jobs. I don't think it's going to take our jobs. I just think everyone's going to become more and more productive. And I think the technology behind or the implementation of that tech, however you're using it, will definitely improve the performance, will improve the creative, will improve the solution you bring to market. It's really just a tool and not necessarily replacement for people or replacement for any type of product and market. I think embrace it rather than, you know, fight it is my view.
Shahar Oren
I couldn't agree more. And you know, I see it in our day to day work again in our marketing, in our business practices. It's never replacing research or creative. It's more of a way to get started. You know, when I was in my editorial days, starting with the blank page, that empty document that just has, you know, that cursor flickering, you know, in front of your face, is the scariest thing. And I think AI in that sense can just get you started with something that you can work with. But it doesn't replace, you know, the human mind and the creativity and the ideation that you're able to bring. It enhances it.
AdTech God
When I talk to people who've been in the industry as long as you have, especially with co founders, there's a lot of ups and downs, There's a lot of challenges that they face. There's a lot of, whether it's based off of growth or product, market fit or, you know, just getting the word out that, you know, that we're here and we have a solution in market. What do you think has been the biggest challenge for you? Being a co founder at xco in getting the name out into the market in the way that you want it to be in market.
Shahar Oren
We are in a very competitive space. I think that's true for so many corners of the ad tech industry and ours as well. And differentiating ourselves has always been the challenge. And you know, I mentioned some of it before that, you know, it took us time to understand what's our unique approach and how to explain that to the industry. And that's where, you know, it's both our marketing work, our business development teams that are in market, that are our ambassadors, our, you know, customer success and operations teams that are speaking to clients, they're all essentially, you know, ambassadors of that differentiation, of that story, you know, of how we approach working with media groups, our approach to video, our approach to the programmatic space. That's always been our challenge because we didn't take the fast and easy route of saying, you know, we're going to show you great results at a very low fee. We said, you know, we're going to give you the best technology with the best protection for your demand, with the most sophisticated way to approach how you're going to run your video strategy. And that's never an easy path, but it's really what brought us to work with the types of clients again, those big media groups that we work with today. And it's also now kind of taking us to the next step which we're planning for next year, which is beyond the web, beyond the traditional publisher and taking what we've built and the ad server that we built in the machine learning based yield engine to other areas of the industry like ctv, like Digital, out of home and more.
AdTech God
Great, because that actually goes into my next question. I was going to ask you, you know, what are your plans for the future and how do you see things changing? What are some trends that you are experiencing and seeing in the market as it relates to video in general that you think is a great opportunity for Xcode and the market overall?
Shahar Oren
So that's the challenge of running the programmatic auction in a sophisticated way and really getting the highest yield out of it is something that we've seen. You know, again on the web, I think the level of sophistication is so high. But in other areas, again, CTV is one from our point of view and again, I'm saying that with caution. You know, this is a new area that we're, that we're getting into and we're learning and we try to be very humble as we approach new areas of the industry. And not make big claims. But it really came to us. Companies in the ctv, in the digital out of home space, came to us through Inbound and said, I want to try and use what I see what you're doing on the web. And I think this can really help me make a lot more with my business. And so taking that level of sophistication in the programmatic auction that we brought to the web and bringing that to those other areas of the industry, that's something that we see as a challenge that, again, from what we've explored so far, the partners that we started testing this with, we see as a big challenge and something that, you know, will be hopefully changing soon, and we hope to be a big part of that change.
AdTech God
If there was something you could do outside of the industry, outside of edtech, I know that you. You're living it. I'm living it. What do you think you'd be doing if you were outside of this industry? It's a tough one.
Shahar Oren
Can I say what I would want to do? Well, I mean, I would always probably be doing something with that's related to content, because that, for me, has always been my biggest passion. And I think, you know, throughout my almost 20 years of career, it's scary to say I've kind of approached content from different angles, again, editorial, marketing. But I always say my retirement career will be planning amazing karaoke parties. So there's that, too.
AdTech God
I cannot karaoke for the life of me. I'm so embarrassed to do it because my voice is so bad. Yeah, I tried it a few years ago, and I was, like, sweating profusely. Like, so uncomfortable in front of just friends. I'm like, this is not for me. I'll just sit down and laugh and have a drink.
Shahar Oren
I hear you, but I actually think the worse you sing, the better you are at karaoke. So.
AdTech God
So what's your favorite karaoke song then, Shahar?
Shahar Oren
It's Lose Yourself by Eminem. Easy.
AdTech God
Amazing. I actually want a video of that. I'm going to ask Tammy for a video of that.
Shahar Oren
So many people in this industry have videos of me doing this, so that's amazing. To be easy. Yeah.
AdTech God
That's amazing. Well, Shahar, thank you. Thank you so much for being here and thank you for taking the time out of your day. And you obviously have some very exciting family changes coming up, and I'm excited for you and your family and wish you the absolute best.
Shahar Oren
Thank you so much. This is great. Thanks for having me.
AdTech God
Thank you. Thanks for tuning in to another episode of the Adtech God Pod, a podcast for the people about the people that make ad tech great. Stay connected with me for more insights, trends and interviews in the realm of ad tech. Don't miss out on our latest updates, so follow me on X Instagram and connect with me on LinkedIn. Don't forget ATG Slack community has insights, networking opportunities and jobs. Keep the conversation going and stay at the forefront of adtech innovation.
AdTechGod Pod Episode 58: The Evolution of Video in Ad Tech with Shachar Orren
Release Date: December 10, 2024
In Episode 58 of the AdTechGod Pod, titled "The Evolution of Video in Ad Tech", host AdTech God engages in an insightful conversation with Shahar Oren, the co-founder, Chief Revenue Officer (CRO), and Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) of XCO. Shahar brings over a decade of experience from the editorial side of the ad tech industry, transitioning into a pivotal role that drives global business development and marketing strategies at XCO. The episode delves into the transformative journey of video within ad tech, the strategic decisions behind XCO’s growth, and the interplay between supply and demand in the evolving digital advertising landscape.
[01:25 - 04:06]
Shahar begins by recounting his career's origins in journalism in Israel, where he spent nearly ten years on the editorial side. Facing a professional plateau, he sought to leverage his editorial expertise into a new venture. This led to the co-founding of XCO, initially focused on "hub tech"—technology designed to enhance publisher content engagement. Shahar emphasizes that the pivot towards ad tech, specifically video, was driven by deep insights gained from working closely with publishers. He highlights two critical realizations:
Shahar states, “Video kind of, you know, we were in the world of content and interactive content, but video has really emerged as the most important” (02:03).
[04:20 - 06:23]
The discussion transitions to the dramatic changes in video consumption over the past decade. Shahar references a report produced in collaboration with Rebooting by Brian Morrissey, which surveyed industry companies and addressed the widely discussed "pivot to video". Initially, many publishers invested heavily in video content for social media platforms' walled gardens, yielding high view counts but limited control and value.
Shahar observes, “Video strategies are still a huge focus. It's still something that every media company defines as a big priority” (04:39). He notes a shift towards a more holistic approach, integrating video into editorial, product, and revenue strategies, thereby ensuring meaningful engagement and commercial success.
[06:23 - 08:21]
AdTech God probes into the optimization strategies for video units, drawing parallels with podcast engagement metrics. Shahar confirms that XCO places significant emphasis on aligning video formats with consumer consumption habits. He elaborates, “There need to be better ways to engage readers and consumers with content instead of going against their consumption habits.” (07:08). This philosophy drives XCO to incorporate short-form and vertical video formats, mirroring the prevalent trends on social platforms. Shahar underscores the importance of continuous adaptation based on client feedback, ensuring that XCO’s offerings remain relevant and effective.
[08:43 - 10:40]
When discussing XCO’s significant milestones, Shahar points to the strategic decision made two years prior to fully embrace video as their core offering. This commitment to video, coupled with a transparent and forward-thinking approach, differentiated XCO in a crowded ad tech market. Shahar remarks, “We want to do things right, we want to see ahead of trends that are going to come in, regulations that are going to come in” (08:43). This dedication not only solidified XCO’s reputation among major media groups but also positioned the company for further expansion into new domains such as Connected TV (CTV) and Digital Out-of-Home (DOOH). Shahar emphasizes that this milestone marked the point where XCO felt confident to scale operations and enhance their market presence.
[10:40 - 14:14]
The conversation shifts to the intricate dynamics between the supply and demand sides of the ad tech ecosystem. Shahar observes that while the lines between supply and demand are increasingly blurring, there remains a significant degree of suspicion and lack of collaboration between the two. He notes, “Sometimes we actually think that they could have collaborated more or they could have seen each other's perspective and point of view and needs more” (10:40). XCO strives to bridge this gap by fostering better communication and partnerships, particularly with large news-oriented media groups like Hearst, the New York Post, and Nasdaq. Shahar highlights efforts to reframe news as an opportunity for brands, countering the demand side's apprehensions about associating with negative news content.
[14:14 - 18:18]
AI's pivotal role in modern ad tech is a central theme in the discussion. Shahar details how machine learning underpins XCO’s products, specifically their ad server and monetization engine, which are entirely machine learning-based. He explains, “Our ad server, our monetization engine is fully machine learning based. That's one of our, our unique value propositions” (14:52). Additionally, XCO utilizes large language models for their video content recommendation engine, automating the matching of videos to relevant pages. Shahar underscores that AI is not a future prospect but a present reality, streamlining operations and enhancing productivity without replacing human creativity. He shares, “AI is not the future, it's the present and it's here” (14:52), aligning with AdTech God’s perspective that AI serves as a powerful tool to augment human capabilities rather than supplant them.
[18:18 - 20:40]
Shahar candidly discusses the challenges XCO faces in differentiating itself within a highly competitive ad tech landscape. Establishing a unique value proposition was initially a hurdle, requiring time and strategic effort to communicate effectively. He states, “Differentiating ourselves has always been the challenge” (18:47). XCO’s commitment to transparency, sophisticated technology, and publisher-centric solutions set them apart from competitors focused on quick, low-fee gains. This approach not only attracted prominent media groups but also paved the way for XCO’s planned expansion into CTV and DOOH segments. Shahar emphasizes that upholding these values is essential for sustaining long-term relationships and fostering trust within the industry.
[20:40 - 22:23]
Looking ahead, Shahar outlines XCO’s ambitions to extend their programmatic auction sophistication beyond web-based platforms into emerging areas such as CTV and DOOH. Recognizing the nascent and evolving nature of these markets, XCO approaches expansion with humility and caution, aiming to apply their proven strategies to new formats. Shahar explains, “Taking that level of sophistication in the programmatic auction that we brought to the web and bringing that to those other areas” (20:59). This strategic move positions XCO to address the unique challenges of these platforms while leveraging their expertise to drive higher yields and more effective ad placements.
[22:23 - 24:05]
The episode concludes with a personal touch as AdTech God and Shahar share anecdotes about karaoke, revealing a lighter side of the industry leaders. Shahar humorously mentions his favorite karaoke song, “Lose Yourself by Eminem,” highlighting the human side behind the tech.
Video as Central to AdTech: Shahar emphasizes the transformative role of video in digital advertising, both in consumer engagement and revenue generation for publishers.
AI Integration: XCO’s adoption of machine learning and AI technologies enhances their product offerings, ensuring sophisticated and efficient ad solutions that align with current industry trends.
Market Differentiation Through Transparency: XCO’s commitment to transparency and publisher-focused solutions distinguishes them in a competitive market, fostering trust and long-term partnerships.
Bridging Supply and Demand: Efforts to reconcile the often disparate perspectives of the supply and demand sides of ad tech are crucial for fostering collaboration and optimizing advertising strategies.
Strategic Expansion: XCO’s planned foray into CTV and DOOH signifies their readiness to adapt and apply their expertise to new and evolving advertising platforms.
Human Element in Tech: The episode underscores the importance of maintaining the human element—creativity, adaptability, and personal connections—even in a highly technological industry.
Shahar Oren on Pivoting to AdTech:
“Video kind of, you know, we were in the world of content and interactive content, but video has really emerged as the most important” – 02:03
Shahar Oren on Holistic Video Strategies:
“Video strategies are still a huge focus. It's still something that every media company defines as a big priority” – 04:39
Shahar Oren on AI’s Current Role:
“AI is not the future, it's the present and it's here” – 14:52
Shahar Oren on Differentiation Challenges:
“Differentiating ourselves has always been the challenge” – 18:47
Episode 58 of the AdTechGod Pod offered a comprehensive exploration of the evolving landscape of video in ad tech through the lens of Shahar Oren’s experiences and insights. From the strategic pivot towards video-centric solutions to the integration of AI and the challenges of market differentiation, Shahar provides a nuanced understanding of the industry's past, present, and future. This episode serves as a valuable resource for professionals and enthusiasts seeking to grasp the complexities and innovations shaping digital advertising today.
Stay tuned to the AdTechGod Pod for more in-depth discussions with the visionaries driving the ad tech industry forward.