NCC, the cable industry’s national spot sales organization, has announced what it is calling a breakthrough ad sales and technology partnership with DirecTV.
Under the agreement, NCC will integrate select regional sports network feeds, which are currently offered to DirecTV customers, into cable advertising interconnects in nine major markets across the nation. NCC will also assume national spot sales representation of DirecTV’s regional sports networks in these markets.
The partnership was announced today by NCC President Greg Schaefer and DirecTV Senior Vice President of Advertising Sales Bob Riordan.
“This is terrific news for both local and national advertisers,” Schaefer said. “Combining DirecTV’s audience with our cable interconnects expands our reach and strengthens our targeted offering. And ad agencies benefit from the single point of contact we will provide both locally and nationally. Combining wired cable with satellite is a major breakthrough for the advertising industry.”
Cable sales and operations leaders worked with NCC and DirecTV to establish the new partnership. Participating markets include Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles and San Francisco.
“Cable operators have made many advancements in working with NCC to offer truly effective planning and buying for advertisers who want to reach cable’s ever-growing audience,” said Charlie Thurston, president of Comcast Spotlight. “And this ground-breaking announcement with DirecTV signifies another major step forward in media sales.”
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