This Week in TV News: the NewFronts, IAB Tech Labs and an Ad Fraud Report

This week, we’re talking about the Digital Content NewFronts, “Game of Thrones” (again) and a report from the ANA and White Ops that says ad fraud is declining.

‘Thrones’ breaks its own viewership record. Last Sunday’s epic battle episode of Game of Thrones garnered 12 million linear viewers and nearly 17.8 million viewers across platforms, breaking the season premiere episode’s viewership (17.4 million). The episode, “The Long Night” ran 82 minutes long and took 11 weeks of shooting. (CNN)

IAB Tech Lab replaces VPAID with SIMID. The IAB Technology Laboratory released SIMID (Secure Interactive Media Interface Definition), a specification designed to increase transparency and an “interactivity solution that should become a critical part of the video supply chain and will promote transparency and security,” said Dennis Buchheim, SVP and General Manager, IAB Tech Lab. (AdExchanger)

ANA and White Ops say fraud is down. And spending on digital advertising is going up. The report, “Bot Baseline,” estimates advertisers will lose $5.8 billion due to ad fraud globally this year, down from $6.5 billion two years ago, an 11% decline. (Ad Age)

Newfronts concludes. The Digital Content NewFronts wrapped after presentations from 14 companies including Digitas, Target, Vice Media, Verizon, YouTube, Conde Nast and Viacom. Celebrity appearances included Alicia Keys, Tiffany Haddish, George Clooney, Reese Witherspoon, Margot Robbie and Mindy Kaling. To sum it up, IAB President & CEO Randall Rothenberg tweeted that this was “the year the entire world – brands, agencies, publishers, creators, influencers, consumers – recognized en masse that #avod, #ott, #streaming IS television, and it’s here and now.” (Digiday)