Channel Factory

Automation may be accelerating media, but context remains the differentiator. Thanks Andy Plesser and Beet.TV for hosting Nico Greco, Nerissa Valdellon, and Nathan Turner for a conversation on how AI, accountability, and cross-channel behavior are shaping what's next. Watch the series, https://lnkd.in/gMuvTa6j

⁉️ The more efficient your campaign looks, the more questions you should be asking. In the latest edition of The Suitable Edition, we unpack the industry's measurement problem and why context and attention may be the missing variables between delivery and impact. 🗞️ Inside this issue: - Why an outdated measurement standard may be limiting performance today - What separates a delivered impression from an impactful one - How brands are redefining media quality through context and attention Read the latest edition ↓

⚽ Our very own Rod Paolucci, Global Head of Marketing, breaks down what's actually changed about sports fandom this World Cup season and why 'showing up' isn't the same as earning attention anymore. 🔗 Read more in EMARKETER, https://lnkd.in/eXS9gwgP #SportsMarketing #Fandom #BrandSuitability #ContextualTargeting

“We’re racing to the bottom on price and not enough people are talking about it.” 🎯 Rob Blake, MD EMEA at Channel Factory, shares the conversation at #CannesLions2026 that everyone was having but no one was saying out loud. Watch the full interview on our YouTube channel: https://lnkd.in/eRHcK-wh #BrandSuitability #BrandSafety #ContextualTargeting

🗣️ Great conversation! Our very own Rob Blake connects with Daniel Bolter at Cannes Lions. We covered everything from brand suitability and agency partnerships to one of the topics I'm most passionate about: investing in people. Thanks to the Cannes Captures team for having me. Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity

🇫🇷 Cannes has always been a snapshot of where our industry is headed. This year, the conversations felt especially focused on what's next. Across our conversations, one theme kept emerging: marketers are moving beyond isolated channels, binary decisions, and legacy ways of measuring success. They're looking for smarter ways to connect context, creativity, performance, and AI into one cohesive strategy. That shift showed up everywhere, from our discussions at SPORT BEACH and the WACL (Women in Advertising & Communications Leadership ) Empowerment Café to roundtables, partner events, and conversations aboard our exclusive Channel Factory Yacht. Thank you to every client, partner, and industry leader who shared ideas, challenged perspectives, and helped shape the week. Here's a look back at Channel Factory at Cannes Lions 2026. Cristian Racioppi, Phil Cowdell, Jaakko Rautanen, Rod Paolucci, Amy Wood (née Crowsley), Fiona Alenda, Wouter Aalberse, Fabien Magalon, David Winstone, Rob Blake, Nerissa Valdellon, Frank Lee, Claus Donnerstag, dentsu, digilearning, La French Connexion 🇫🇷, Creds, Marketing Finland, Dansk Annoncørforening, WACL (Women in Advertising & Communications Leadership ), xpln.ai Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, Stagwell #CannesLions2026 #YouTubeAdvertising #BrandSuitability #ContextualAdvertising #InclusiveMarketing #AI

🤖 What if the biggest challenge in AI isn't understanding content, but understanding the people consuming it? In the latest edition of The Suitable Edition, we explore a question that kept surfacing throughout our conversations at Cannes Lions: why categorizing content isn't the same as comprehending it. Inside this issue: - Why the same content can mean different things to different audiences - What algorithms still struggle to understand - Why contextual intelligence is moving beyond categorization toward interpretation Read the latest edition 👇 Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity #TheSuitableEdition #CannesLions #BrandSuitability #ContextualAdvertising #AI #MediaStrategy

Technology should adapt to people, not the other way around. How do brands preserve human judgment in an increasingly automated world? Last week at SPORT BEACH, Channel Factory's Cristian Racioppi sat down with Tia Castagno, Chief Innovation Officer at dentsu, to explore the balance between AI, brand building, and human connection. The conversation covered: 👉 Why not every customer experience should be frictionless. 👉 How brands can decide what should—and shouldn't—be automated. 👉 Why long-term brand building still requires human judgment. 👉 The importance of understanding communities beyond algorithmic signals. 👉 Why live experiences remain one of the biggest untapped opportunities for marketers. Watch the full conversation to hear why the future of innovation starts with putting people first. https://lnkd.in/equa2x5x Stagwell Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity #CannesLions2026 #MarketingInnovation #AgenticAI #BrandStrategy #ContextMatters

What's the difference between a brand that sponsors a sport and one that actually powers it? At SPORT BEACH, Cristian Racioppi, Director of brand partnership at Channel Factory sat down with Alberto Spinelli, CMO Europe and META at Lenovo, a brand whose technology runs the technical centre in the F1 paddock, operates FIFA's International Broadcasting Centre in Dallas, and redesigned the referee's camera you see on screen during replays, powered by Lenovo AI. In this conversation, he gets into: 👉 Why Lenovo defines sponsorship as leveraging technology to advance the sport itself, not placing a logo 👉 How he shifted Lenovo's media strategy from reach and volume to relevancy, storytelling, and ecosystem 👉 The real distinction between brand safety (protecting your reputation) and brand suitability (building it) 👉 His advice to any CMO in a noisy market: define what your brand truly stands for first. The advertising and sponsorship strategy follow from that, not the other way around. Watch the conversation 👇 #Cannes2026 #CannesLions #SportBeach #BrandSuitability #SportsMarketing #CMO #Lenovo #ChannelFactory

Brand safety protects your brand, but brand suitability helps it perform. That was the central theme of Channel Factory's session, The Evolution of Safety & Suitability in the Agentic Age, at Cannes Lions, featuring Phil Cowdell and Claus Donnerstag. As AI becomes more embedded in media planning and decision-making, the conversation is shifting. It's no longer just about avoiding risk, it's about making smarter, more intentional choices that drive better outcomes. A few ideas that stood out: → AI is a means to an end, not the strategy itself. → Context is a competitive advantage. → Brand suitability goes beyond protection to create stronger performance. → The biggest opportunity isn't making today's process 10% better, it's rethinking what's possible. Swipe through for key insights from the discussion. Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity #CannesLions2026 #BrandSuitability #AgenticAI #ResponsibleMedia #ContextualAdvertising