With the Liberty A-League season kicking off this weekend, Nick Bower, GM of ad sales for Paramount ANZ, said the network is looking to continue to build on the success of viewing numbers from a year ago.
"Across both platforms of 10 Play and Paramount Plus for A-Leagues last year, audiences are in significant growth in almost every single metric," he said.
"They were up year on year in terms of minutes viewed and stream starts.
"10 Play last week was up 44% from the year before and that platform in particular is flying and will host all of the Liberty A-League matches, free to view for all Australians."
Bower said that from a user experience point of view, Paramount+ will be taking some steps forward in terms of functionality.
"Like at home when you're watching it, that seamless transition between commercial breaks at halftime," he said.
"We're also going to start with a countdown at the start of the coverage, so when you click in initially, you will be able to be aware of how long you've got until the match coverage starts.
"There's a few other enhancements that people will have to look out for too."
In terms of partners for the broadcast, Bower said it's great to welcome back Isuzu Ute, who will be front and center throughout the season.
"We also have Harvey Norman returning which is fantastic," Bower told AdNews.
"We've got a couple of other brands about to drop and very close in the likes of QSR and FMCG. All advertisers will get to experience what we believe will be a really strong and consistent audience across the season."
On the point of that audience, Bower said what Paramount is trying to build is consistency.
"We're targeting some strong audiences and our partners are really committed to the packages that they've bought," he said.
"A-League fans have always been strong but with the excitement around both women's football and this season, we know it's going to be a good one for audiences."
Paramount+ are tapping into that excitement with the 'Where Stars Are Made' campaign, with local Melbourne artist Chitra covering John Lennon’s song Instant Karma (We All Shine On).
The campaign showcases both the stars of the A-Leagues and the up-and-coming future stars, with Bower saying it's getting some some paid, earned and on-platform media promotion to push and support.
"It showcases the effort, the focus and the commitment we have to the sport at the moment and we're really excited to see that come to fruition Sunday night," he told AdNews.
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