What you will find in the article:
- Pilot study measures real-world viewer attention to TV and video ads.
- Research involves 300 Czech households for comprehensive attention tracking.
- Study evaluates ad length, position, and format for viewer engagement.
- Partnership with Amplified Intelligence ensures rigorous methodology and technology.
- Aim to establish a unified metric for comparing attention across media.
Viewer attention can vary significantly depending on ad length, position within an advertising break, and the type of advertising format. These are among the preliminary findings of a pilot project by Omnicom Media, the first study in Central and Eastern Europe to measure real-world attention to TV and video advertising in people’s homes.
Omnicom Media is completing the pilot phase of its attention measurement study, which tracks actual viewer behaviour while audiences are exposed to television and video advertising. The project is being conducted in partnership with technology company Amplified Intelligence and local research partner ResSolution Group. As the first initiative of its kind in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), it uses continuous attention measurement across a panel of 300 Czech households.
The study captures both active and passive attention across linear TV, connected TV (CTV) and online video, with the aim of establishing a single, comparable metric for evaluating different advertising formats.
According to Zuzana Horáková, Technology Director at Omnicom Media, the first results, covering the period from May to August, already indicate substantial differences in the ability of individual formats, ad lengths and positions within commercial breaks to capture and sustain viewers’ attention.
The pilot phase is now evolving into a longer-term initiative designed to create a continuous data source for the planning and evaluation of video advertising in the Czech market.
What did the preparation for the attention study involve, and how long did it take to get the project up and running?
The preparation involved several months of intensive work. As the first organisation to launch a study of this kind anywhere in the CEE region, our goal was to establish a robust and methodologically rigorous measurement framework. This required extensive technology testing as well as adapting a global methodology to the specific characteristics of the Czech market.
One of our key advantages was Omnicom’s strong international network. Our colleagues in the UK have been successfully conducting this research with the same lead partner for the past three years. Following an initial pilot, they moved to continuous measurement, which has since become an established part of the market data ecosystem.
We therefore had a proven foundation to build on and were able to draw on established methodologies and practical experience.
The commitment of five of our clients, who joined us during the pilot phase at a time when no one knew exactly what the data would reveal, was equally important. Together, we defined the hypotheses, technical setup and analytical framework to ensure the study covered linear TV, CTV and online environments.
How exactly does the measurement work, and how does it differ from existing attention studies?
The fundamental difference lies in our unique approach. We do not rely on self-reported data, laboratory-based models or modelled estimates.
Instead, we use a real-world, technology-enabled panel of 300 households, capturing people’s actual active and passive attention on a second-by-second basis in their natural home environment.
The technology combines advanced facial and gaze detection with audio matching, enabling the system to accurately identify and match the content being viewed in real time.
We measure the market comprehensively and apply Amplified Intelligence’s single, globally standardised methodology across multiple video formats and screens.
Our long-term vision is to establish a unified metric that enables direct and fair comparisons of attention across all media types — from digital and television to other channels — providing comparable data on how much real attention consumers actually devote to advertising.
Who are you partnering with on the research, and how is the project structured from a technical and methodological perspective?
The partnership combines global expertise in attention measurement with strong local research infrastructure.
Amplified Intelligence serves as the project’s technology and methodology partner and is one of the world’s leading authorities in the field of the Attention Economy, ensuring a consistent methodological standard.
From the very beginning, we have discussed the project directly on several occasions with Amplified Intelligence founder Professor Karen Nelson-Field, giving us confidence that the methodology is being implemented to the highest possible standard.
For data collection and operation of the Czech panel, Amplified Intelligence selected ResSolution Group as its local partner. The company has extensive experience with large-scale research programmes, including out-of-home TV audience measurement.
ResSolution Group manages the representative household panel on behalf of Amplified Intelligence, providing the project with the statistical robustness required for detailed segmentation by demographics, channels and specific placement types.
We do not rely on self-reported data, laboratory-based models or modelled estimates. Instead, we use a real-world, technology-enabled panel of 300 households, capturing people’s actual active and passive attention on a second-by-second basis in their natural environment.
The study is designed to compare attention according to ad length, position within a commercial break, channel type and advertising format. How did you decide which parameters were most important to measure?
We started with the real-world questions agencies and advertisers address every day.
We did not want to limit the study to traditional commercial breaks. We therefore examine the impact of different ad lengths, positions within the break, and differences between thematic and generalist TV channels.
At the same time, the study also covers sponsorships, branded in-programme inserts and product placement, allowing us to map the broader advertising ecosystem using one consistent metric.
What could this research bring to the wider market in terms of how television and video advertising are evaluated today?
It represents a fundamental shift from simply measuring an “opportunity to see” an advertisement to measuring the amount of actual attention delivered, in seconds.
Until now, the market has often worked on the assumption that having a viewer in front of the screen automatically equates to 100% exposure.
Our research provides robust, objective data showing how much attention people actually pay to advertising messages, creating opportunities for more effective use of advertising inventory.
Until now, the market has often worked on the assumption that having a viewer in front of the screen automatically equates to 100% exposure. Our research provides robust, objective data showing how much attention people actually pay to advertising messages.
How could this research influence the use of attention as an optimisation metric for TV and video planning in the Czech market?
Attention is moving from an abstract concept to a measurable planning currency.
With this data, media strategies can be optimised not only against reach and frequency, but also directly against cost per attentive second.
This allows us to optimise the balance between shorter and longer ad formats, make more strategic decisions about positioning within commercial breaks, and allocate budgets more precisely across linear TV, CTV and online video.
The objective is to maximise brand memory and advertising impact while maintaining optimal cost efficiency.
How can advertisers use the resulting data?
For advertisers, the data can provide a significant competitive advantage.
Our five pilot clients can already compare their own performance directly against competitors, their category and the market as a whole. The early findings suggest that their decision to participate in the project from the outset has given them a substantial head start.
Advertisers can determine exactly how their creative performs over time by analysing attention decay, identify which formats deliver the greatest amount of attention per unit of media investment, assess whether premium placements generate sufficient incremental value, and understand how the behaviour of their target audience differs from that of the population as a whole.
This enables significantly more precise media investment decisions and helps reduce inefficient media spend.
Are you able to share any preliminary findings?
We are keeping the specific figures and benchmarks exclusive to our clients for now, but the first data from May to August is already challenging a number of long-standing assumptions.
For example, we are seeing major differences in attention-retention curves across different ad lengths, surprising behavioural patterns among specific age groups at different times of day, and highly interesting findings regarding the performance of sponsorships and branded in-programme inserts compared with traditional commercial breaks and online video.
The project also consists of two stages. The pilot measurement phase is currently reaching its conclusion, and we are seamlessly transitioning into a longer-term project together with key partners in the TV market.
The objective is to move towards continuous data collection and track the long-term evolution of advertising attention in the Czech market.
We will be presenting the data soon.
Source: MediaGuru.cz