The shift to programmatic isn’t making things easier for Scripps, the media company behind properties like HGTV, The Food Network, and The Travel Channel.
Programmatic, difficulties monetizing mobile, and declining display revenues brought Scripps’ digital business down 5.3% year over year. Since digital accounted for just $27 million out of Scripps’ $684 million in revenue for the quarter, the company had a solid quarter overall, with total operating revenues up 6.5%.
“We’re seeing some headwinds from programmatic buying” affecting digital revenues, President Burton Jablin told investors during the company’s Q2 earnings call Thursday.
Scripps is not alone in having difficulty adapting to programmatic. Other publishers that have cited issues with programmatic depressing average CPMs areThe New York Times, Meredith, Yahoo .
Digital and television are also working together. At its last Upfront, the Scripps sales team created packaged and sold television and digital ad inventory together, which Jablin also cited as a way the two areas of the business can complement each other.
