A firm believer in collaboration, Leifer helped forge a deeper relationship with Amazon last year by combining DirecTV’s first-party data with AWS Clean Room, a move that enables brands to securely partner with other companies without sharing underlying data. Her efforts have helped shape DirecTV’s ad business with stunning results. Brand commitments were up 42% during the 2023 upfront, data asset revenue rose 13%, digital and programmatic revenue increased 20% and addressable RFO revenue quadrupled. Leifer remains committed to empowering women through her involvement in She Runs It, mentoring members to enhance their leadership skills.
Business speak or buzzword I find most annoying: Without a doubt, it’s interoperability. The concept is essential in the world of convergent advertising solutions where partnership across the industry is critical, but it’s almost as if someone won a contest for making collaboration sound as complicated as possible. We need a term that encapsulates its essence without sounding like a tech jargon puzzle.
What emerging industry trend are you most excited about? I’m truly excited about the trend of aggregation in our industry. With the vast array of TV content available, it’s crucial to have a single platform where I can access all my favorite shows, movies, and sports events across both live TV and streaming. DIRECTV’s approach of providing seamless access to a wide range of apps and channels in one experience is a game-changer. It simplifies entertainment to its core, making it more enjoyable for everyone.
The last thing AI got wrong was… AI’s ‘hallucinations’ present a challenge, illustrating the technology’s potential to generate misinformation. While we navigate these concerns, it’s imperative we use AI responsibly and implement stringent guardrails. Despite these hurdles, the transformative potential of AI is undeniable, and its journey is just beginning.
What’s your position on Stanley cups? A great example of a company that has brilliantly transformed its business to meet an entirely new audience where they are. That being said, you may not see me carrying one around, no offense to Stanley of course!
