[ad_1]
CANNES, France— “What’s harder to survive, Squid Game or Cannes Lions?” asks a black and white billboard on the rooftop of Cannes’ JW Marriot hotel, home to Netflix’s activation at the festival.
It’s only the second time the streamer has officially shown up for the annual creative gathering, rubbing shoulders with marketers and encouraging them to shift budgets to its ad tier, which now counts 40 million monthly active users.
And after a buzzy upfronts season—where it announced plans to build an adtech stack and surprised everyone by scoring the rights to the NFL Christmas Day games—its president of advertising, Amy Reinhard, is even more determined that Netflix will not just survive but thrive at Cannes.
“This is my first Cannes, and what stands out to me most is the creativity here. As much as we’re a tech company, our intersection with creativity is our lifeblood,” Reinhard told ADWEEK. “You see all these prolific brands here, too, so it’s good for us to stand amongst them.”
In its pitch to advertisers, Netflix is betting on its content and creative chops, and its space is a shrine to its series.
There are immersive activations throughout, ranging from an Emily in Paris Boulangerie, a Squid Game challenge, a Bridgerton garden and more. Parties throughout the week have included appearances from the likes of Janelle Monáe and Kaytranada. There’s even a sports lounge featuring NFL and WWE branding.
Besides one open afternoon, the space has been closed to the public, reserved for execs, guests and the press. Reinhard said the activation had to be social so fans could “touch and feel” Netflix.
Fielding questions from clients
EMarketer estimates that Netflix’s nascent ad business will pull in $1 billion in ad revenue in 2024, but a stroll down the Côte d’Azur shows competition for these dollars is stiff. Amazon and YouTube have gone big with their activations, while Disney used the festival to announce plans to open up its ad platform to a wider range of advertisers.
Reinhard said her “secret sauce” to stand out from the Cannes crowd has been teaming up with Netflix’s CMO, Marian Lee, who helps bring Netflix’s brand story to life when pitching to senior marketers.
