Day One At the Upfront: Oprah Vs. Outcomes

It turns out that at Day One of the upfronts, “O” didn’t just stand for outcomes. It also stood for Oprah.

At the upfront presentations, the networks sang and danced about the glories of TV and TV advertising. There were plenty of bold-faced names from entertainment, sports and news making their way across the stage.

An appearance by Oprah Winfrey at Amazon’s event might have been the biggest moment, but a good amount of talk was about data and driving outcomes.

At NBCUniversal, ad sales head Mark Marshall talked about Live Total Impact, a product designed to retarget viewers after they’ve seen a commercial during live programming.

“State Farm was a beta partner in one of our live events. That initial exposure delivered tremendous results for them,” Marshall said. “But for the first time ever, it didn’t stop there. By using Live Total Impact, State Farm saw a 90% incremental lift in insurance quote starts.”

He said NBCU is also using AI to offer contextually targeted ads in live programming and a Performance Insights Hub to display the full-funnel business impact of campaigns using outcomes data from providers including Instacart, iSpot and FreeWheel. “You can actually see how your media is driving real sales in real time,” Marshall said.

Fox ad sales head Jeff Collins talked about the Fox Ad Studio, which he said has delivered advanced outcome reports for more than 1,000 campaigns showing double-digit lifts in key metrics like in-store sales and foot traffic. “Because when audiences are truly engaged, performance isn’t something you hope for. It’s something you can count on.”

To go even deeper, Fox brought out chief technology officer Melody Hildenbrandt.

“When we acquired Tubi six years ago, our technology center of gravity moved to Silicon Valley. We now run over 2,000 product experiments yearly, and we were the first streamer to natively integrate into ChatGPT,” she said.

Hildenbrandt said Fox has used AI to compare attributes of its raw video in real time against performance data. That enables the company to understand what content and advertising is resonating with our audiences at a fan level. “That’s the engine behind what we call Fox Fan OS, an agentic AI native media operating system built on two connected platforms,” the Fox Fan Studio and the Fox Ad Studio.

Fox Fan OS isn’t a one-off project, Hildenbrandt said. “This is how we turn passion into performance.”

Amazon is perhaps the most data-focused advertising company, but its presentation amped up the star power with Oprah, Michael B. Jordan, Arnold Schwarzenegger and an opening music performance from Kacey Musgraves.

But Tanner Elton, VP, US ad sales for Amazon Ads, laid out the Amazon Ads pitch. “Tonight, we’re going to show you how Amazon delivers. How we deliver premium entertainment, authenticate audiences at unparalleled scale, and the precisely measured outcomes that grow your business.”

Elton said that Amazon has the largest supply of premium ad supported content and that content reaches 300 million people.

“Every one of those touch points becomes a signal. But here’s what makes these signals different. Amazon delivers to real homes across the country, real addresses with real relationships,” he said. “These signals are not models. They’re not assumed. They’re built on trust.”

Elton said that Amazon provides the industry’s largest authenticated reach, encompassing 90% of U.S. households, and that its collection of signals “give us unparalleled precision. That precision drives performance and that performance delivers outcomes that matter.”

Most of the time, ad buyers are just guessing who their ads reach. “With our authenticated graph, you don’t have to guess. Whether you want to reach the organics-only Whole Foods shopper, coffee lovers on the East Coast, or the most desirable demo in our entire industry, the father of five who bulk orders protein, well we’ve got whoever you want to reach, wherever they are.”

Oh, and by the way, Oprah announced she was bringing her podcast to Amazon.

Funny Stuff

In addition to the talk about performance and performances, there were lighter moments, such as when Seth Meyers riffed on the state of the industry while closing out the NBC upfront.

“I’m Seth Meyers, or, as the FCC calls me, next,” he said, alluding to the administration's war against late-night comedians.

“NBC was the number one broadcast network for the 2025-2026 season. After over a decade, we have taken down CBS. Well, the Ellisons did, but I like to think we helped. Seriously, what’s going on over there? They’re so in the pocket for Trump that I hear next year Survivor’s in the Strait of Hormuz,” Meyers cracked.

Meyers also took a shot at some other rivals. “Netflix is hosting its upfronts at a Pier on the Hudson River, because once a Netflix show hits two seasons, that’s where they dump its body,” he said. “And if you’re from out of town and you get hassled by someone for money on the subway, don’t panic, That’s just the Versant after party.”

He didn’t spare Comcast, which he noted had made a bid for Warner Bros. Discovery. “No one thought we were actually going to get it. It was kind of like that one friend who always pretends to reach for his wallet after the check comes.” Also: "Speaking of streamers, Comcast said on its most recent earnings call that Peacock is approaching profitability in the same way Kevin Hart is approaching seven feet tall."

Meyers concluded by noting that NBC is turning 100 years old, “which means, right now, it’s watching CBS.”

Don’t forget to tip your waiters.

Luke Valvano Named CFO At Madhive

Madhive said it hired Luke Valvano as chief financial officer. Valvano most recently had been CFO of Intersection and treasurer of CityBridge.

“Madhive’s mission is to empower the evolution of local media and our appointment of Luke as CFO strengthens our leadership team to deliver on that mission,” said Jim Wilson, CEO of Madhive. “Luke’s trusted leadership spanning both financial strategy and a broader advertising ecosystem makes him uniquely suited to joining us as we drive our next chapter of omnichannel growth.”

Valvano will oversee Madhive’s financial strategy and execution as it expands its digital advertising hub for local, offering both managed and self-service solutions.

“Madhive has created a market-leading DSP that redefined what is possible for local media,” said Valvano. “As CFO, I am excited to help lead a company that prioritizes its evolving solutions including Maverick’s AI solutions and other technological innovation and operational automation and excellence. We are giving local media the sophisticated technology to turn complex digital strategies into measurable, high-growth results that protect and expand their bottom line.”