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The Trade Desk confirms development of streaming TV OS

Seven months after announcing a data-driven partnership with Roku, The Trade Desk CEO says Roku and others have a "conflict of interest" in the CTV ad space because they own content.

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mkeys@thedesk.net

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(Stock photo by James Yarema via Unsplash)

The co-founder and CEO of advertising technology firm The Trade Desk affirmed this week the company is developing its own streaming TV operating system.

The software, currently nicknamed “Ventura,” will exist to level the playing field between advertisers and companies involved in the connected TV industry, The Trade Desk CEO Jeff Green said in a news interview.

The introduction of Ventura will come at a time when the streaming TV operating system is dominated by two players in the U.S. market — Amazon and Roku — the latter of which announced an advertising partnership with The Trade Desk in April.

Green feels The Trade Desk is in a good position to build its own operating system, noting that other companies “have a conflict of interest because they own content,” Axios said in an article that characterized the news as an “exclusive.” (The development of The Trade Desk’s streaming TV operating system was first reported in August by tech reporter Janko Roettgers; Axios is known to publish stories as “scoops” without crediting other journalists who broke certain news ahead of them.)

“We’re looking at a concentration around a handful of players that lack objectivity,” Green told Axios. “We think we’re in a unique position to make the ecosystem better.”

Connected TV and video advertising comprises nearly 50 percent of The Trade Desk’s business, executives affirmed in past interviews. The ads are sold auction-style, similar to how other digital advertising platforms operate.

In September, Roettgers reported hardware maker Sonos was exploring a partnership with The Trade Desk for its connected TV operating system — something Axios repeated on Wednesday, without crediting Roettger’s work.

“At Sonos, we are committed to providing our customers with the very best home entertainment experience,” a Sonos executive said this week. “We are excited to explore the integration of premium audio and video with The Trade Desk and the Ventura OS.”

The Trade Desk and The Desk are separate, unaffiliated businesses.

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About the Author:

Matthew Keys

Matthew Keys is the award-winning founder and editor of TheDesk.net, an authoritative voice on broadcast and streaming TV, media and tech. With over ten years of experience, he's a recognized expert in broadcast, streaming, and digital media, with work featured in publications such as StreamTV Insider and Digital Content Next, and past roles at Thomson Reuters and Disney-ABC Television Group.
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