Former Roku execs debut new smart TV advertising outfit

Former Roku executives Steven Shannon and Jim Lombard have unveiled Tetra TV, a new smart TV advertising startup.

Steve Shannon and Jim Lombard of Tetra TV

The new company yesterday announced the launch of what it described as the industry’s first connected TV-focused advertising network.

Tetra TV’s platform pools ad inventory from more than 100 streaming video content channels to deliver targeted campaigns at scale for advertisers, who will be able to purchase inventory and dynamically insert ads across platforms including Apple TV, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Roku, Sony PlayStation, Xbox and smart TVs from Samsung, Vizio, Sony, and LG.

Tetra TV’s technology is designed to maximize support for a variety of data and measurement providers to target audiences across its 50 million connected TV households.

Shannon most recently ran content and advertising at Roku as the SVP of content and services.  Lombard, who launched the Roku video advertising sales offering in 2013 and directed ad sales at Roku, is serving as Tetra TV’s chief revenue officer.

“Ad-supported streaming TV is growing fast, but the viewing is fragmented across a wide array of devices and publishers creating siloed video ad inventory. Tetra TV navigates these complexities, unlocks premium ad inventory, and provides transparent reporting with universal measurement standards for advertisers looking to reach the growing streaming TV audience,” said Lombard.

“By combining the benefits of digital ad delivery with the impact of TV, streaming television will become the most powerful ad medium on Earth. Through working directly with premium video publishers and the industry’s most reliable data providers, Tetra TV’s goal is to execute highly efficient, outcome-driven CTV ad campaigns at scale,” said Shannon.