Nine has been appointed by Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) to act as the exclusive sales partner for advertising on the Max streaming service in Australia. The move adds a premium ad-supported SVOD component to Nine’s sales proposition. Nine’s SVOD Stan only sells advertising for sports.
Nine will act as Max’s sales representatives to commercially maximise its ad-supported ‘Basic With Ads’ tier inventory when it launches on 31 March.
Max will be the home of WBD’s premium slate of content, including HBO and Max Originals such as The Last of Us, The White Lotus and the Sex And The City spin off, And Just Like That…, as well as hit Warner Bros. films and real-life content from Discovery, HGTV, ID and more.
Max will become a key component of Nine’s digital video proposition to advertisers, represented by Nine Sales across the country. When combined with 9Now and Stan Sport, Nine’s said its representation of WBD creates “a significant scale of audience across leading SVOD and BVOD categories.
This inventory will form part of Nine’s premium revenue strategy driven by Powered (premium integrated sales and strategy) while Nine’s Centre of Digital Excellence (Digital solutions, data, product and programmatic) will form the foundation of the sales strategy.
The relationship will allow Nine to offer agencies and clients innovative and streamlined ad solutions across both SVOD and BVOD platforms, ultimately delivering better business results for advertisers.
WBD’s GM Australia and New Zealand Michael Brooks said: “This is the first time WBD’s premium slate of content has existed in one place in Australia. Launching Max with an ad-supported tier creates a compelling offer for viewers and advertisers alike, while partnering with Nine allows us to tap into their deep experience, strong relationships and proven capabilities.”
Nine’s acting chief sales officer Matt James said: “The combination of Max’s amazing content and world-leading advertising products with Nine’s local expertise, sales infrastructure and scale is a unique opportunity for clients in this country. This relationship with WBD will accelerate our strategy into the digital video market and offer clients better return on investment.”
