Skydance is reportedly evaluating a transition from Comcast-owned FreeWheel to Google for its streaming ad server technology following the merger of Paramount and Warner Bros. The potential shift aims to consolidate the ad tech stack across Paramount+, Pluto TV, and HBO Max.
This potential migration signals a significant consolidation of the ad tech stack for Paramount+, Pluto TV, and HBO Max under a single provider. By moving to Google, Skydance avoids providing competitive data to Comcast's NBCUniversal while gaining deeper integration with YouTube TV's ecosystem. For the broader market, this move challenges FreeWheel's dominance in premium CTV ad serving just as it prepares for a spin-off from Comcast. The shift highlights the growing tension between media companies that are simultaneously partners and competitors in the advertising space. Watch for whether Google can maintain ad frequency standards across these diverse platforms during the multi-year migration process.
Skydance is considering replacing Comcast-owned FreeWheel with Google Ads Manager to consolidate ad infrastructure for Paramount+, Pluto TV, and HBO Max. This strategic shift aims to protect sensitive data from NBCUniversal-linked platforms while integrating with the YouTube TV ecosystem, signaling a major challenge to FreeWheel's dominance in premium CTV ad serving.
CEO David Ellison is reportedly moving away from FreeWheel to avoid sharing sensitive data with platforms linked to NBCUniversal, which is owned by Comcast.
The transition would impact the advertising stacks for Paramount+, Pluto TV, and HBO Max.
Skydance opted against building its own ad server to avoid the long development timelines that other companies, such as Netflix, have recently experienced.
The transition is expected to take years to complete due to the complexity involved in merging multiple streaming and cable network backends.
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