What you need to know in advertising today

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What you need to know in advertising today

Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony

Winter Olympics Opening Ceremony

We're currently in the era of 'peak TV' - with 500 or more scripted series being produced - but nobody seems to have a good handle on how many people are actually watching them.

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Measuring audiences is a problem because there are more ways to watch the shows than ever before. And the more that TV content is delivered via digital pipes - like say through a Roku device - rather than over the air or through cable, the harder it is proving to track.

The more digital TV gets the more difficult it is to measure. And that potentially puts billions of ad dollars in jeopardy.

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Take NBCUniversal, which is set to air 2,400 hours of the Olympics on TV and will stream 1,800 hours of events live. Between its library of networks (CNBC, SyFy, NBCSN) and the expanding number of outlets hosting its content (Roku, Amazon Fire, Xbox, Apple TV, DirecTV Now) the company has a whopping 750 avenues for its TV content to reach people.

To read why the state of TV measurement is a "big fat mess," click here.

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In other news:

Advertising agencies are set to bounce back in 2018 as brand marketing is poised to make a comeback. The prospects look a lot brighter in 2018, according to new research issued by UBS.

Small brands and influencers are worried that Instagram is choking off their traffic - just like Facebook did with publishers. They are certain that fewer people are seeing their posts in recent weeks, and fear that Instagram could follow in the footsteps of Facebook's News Feed change.

NBCUniversal is building a new ad team to help marketers navigate Snap, Apple News, BuzzFeed and Vox. NBCU Code is a specialized sale unit to help cater to advertisers looking to create unique programs via these different properties.

YouTube has temporarily suspended ads from the channel of controversial vlogger Logan Paul, citing a "pattern of recent behavior." In a recent video, Paul posted footage of himself tasering two rat corpses.

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Twitter made its first profit last quarter, with a surprise jump in revenue to $731.6 million. But monthly users stayed flat, and its filings show Twitter achieved profit by cutting costs rather than growth.

Investors love Twitter again - but their excitement could scare off any potential buyers. Wall Street bid up shares of Twitter on Thursday after the company posted better-than-expected fourth-quarter results.

Pepsi is copying a cult-favorite soda brand with a new drink - and it could be a $100 million win. It has launched a new sparkling water brand called bubly, which challenges cult classic LaCroix with bright packaging and cutesy catchphrases, such as tabs that say "Hey u."

Facebook is testing a downvote button so people can flag problematic comments; but the company said this is absolutely not a dislike button. When people tap the downvote button, Facebook will offer additional options such as "Offensive," "Misleading," and "Off Topic."

Twitch is clamping down on harassment and inappropriate content on its platform with tighter rules that will likely affect many of its creators. Moderators will also bar content that is sexually suggestive, after media noted that streamers wear revealing clothing to attract viewers.

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