Vizio Holding Corp (VZIO) 2022 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good afternoon, and welcome to VIZIO's Q4 2022 Earnings Call. I'm Michael Marks, Director of Investor Relations. Joining me for today's discussion are William Wang, our Founder and CEO and Adam Townsend, our CFO. Also joining us for the Q&A portion of today's call is Michael O'Donnell, our Chief Revenue and Strategic Growth Officer.

下午好，歡迎來到 VIZIO 的 2022 年第四季度財報電話會議。我是投資者關係總監 Michael Marks。與我一起參加今天討論的是我們的創始人兼首席執行官 William Wang 和我們的首席財務官 Adam Townsend。我們的首席收入和戰略增長官 Michael O'Donnell 也加入了今天電話會議的問答環節。

Please note that in addition to our earnings release in today's remarks, a slide presentation can be found on our Investor Relations website at investors.vizio.com. I'll refer you to the third slide in the presentation and remind you that certain statements made on this call, including certain statements about our expected first quarter results, advertising relationships and partners, product rollouts and functionality and future customer demand for our products are forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. These risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements are discussed in more detail in our filings with the SEC and our press release that was issued this afternoon. We undertake no obligation to revise any statements to reflect changes that occur after this call, except as required by law.

請注意，除了我們在今天的評論中發布的收益外，還可以在我們的投資者關係網站 investors.vizio.com 上找到幻燈片演示。我將向您介紹演示文稿中的第三張幻燈片，並提醒您在本次電話會議上所做的某些陳述，包括關於我們預期的第一季度業績、廣告關係和合作夥伴、產品推出和功能以及未來客戶對我們產品的需求的某些陳述是涉及風險和不確定性的前瞻性陳述。這些可能導致實際結果與這些前瞻性陳述存在重大差異的風險和不確定性在我們向美國證券交易委員會提交的文件和我們今天下午發布的新聞稿中進行了更詳細的討論。除非法律要求，否則我們沒有義務修改任何聲明以反映此次電話會議後發生的變化。

During the call, we also refer to non-GAAP financial measures including adjusted EBITDA and certain operational and financial metrics. Reconciliations to the most comparable GAAP measures for non-GAAP financial information discussed on this call, as well as further information related to guidance, definitions and metrics can be found in our earnings release which is on the Investors section of our website. Note that all quarterly comparisons in today's remarks was made on a year-over-year basis unless otherwise specified.

在電話會議期間，我們還提到了非 GAAP 財務指標，包括調整後的 EBITDA 以及某些運營和財務指標。與本次電話會議上討論的非 GAAP 財務信息的最具可比性 GAAP 措施的對賬，以及與指導、定義和指標相關的更多信息，可以在我們網站投資者部分的收益發布中找到。請注意，除非另有說明，否則今天評論中的所有季度比較都是按年進行的。

Now, I will turn the call over to William.

現在，我將把電話轉給威廉。

Thank you, Michael, and hello everyone. Thank you for joining us today. 2022 marked our 20 anniversary for the company that has always been focused on delivering great products and experiences at affordable prices. There's no doubt that this past year presented numerous challenges, but despite them, our team did a great job executing on our dual revenue model.

謝謝邁克爾，大家好。感謝您今天加入我們。 2022 年標誌著我們公司成立 20 週年，該公司一直專注於以實惠的價格提供優質的產品和體驗。毫無疑問，過去的一年帶來了無數挑戰，但儘管如此，我們的團隊在執行雙重收入模式方面做得很好。

In just it's third year since its launch, our Platform+ business grew revenue by 55% and gross profit by 41% in 2022. The growth and now greater scale we have achieved in our Platform+ business provides a new level of financial strength and strategic flexibility. This combines with our focus on cost management delivered 15% growth in adjusted EBITDA in the fourth quarter, further demonstrating the beneficial transformation in our business model.

自推出以來的第三年，我們的 Platform+ 業務在 2022 年的收入增長了 55%，毛利潤增長了 41%。我們在 Platform+ 業務中實現的增長和現在更大的規模提供了一個新的財務實力和戰略靈活性水平。這與我們對成本管理的關注相結合，使第四季度調整後的 EBITDA 增長了 15%，進一步證明了我們業務模式的有益轉變。

We also continue to maintain a strong and heavy liquid balance sheet with no debt, which remains an important advantage in a highly competitive environment. As we continue to invest in features and innovation that would redefine the smart TV will work do so, while remaining focused and disciplined on overhead and resource management.

我們還繼續保持強大而沉重的流動性資產負債表，沒有債務，這在競爭激烈的環境中仍然是一個重要的優勢。隨著我們繼續投資於將重新定義智能電視的功能和創新，我們將繼續這樣做，同時保持對管理費用和資源管理的關注和紀律。

Today, I'm also pleased to share that VIZIO was recently honored with an Emmy Award for Technology and Engineering around our innovative use of ACR technology. It is extremely rewarding to see our engineering excellence and creativity recognized by dozens of industries, experts and peers. It is clear that our winning spirit is changing the TV industry and continues to benefit our partners across advertising, measurement and content, as well as our millions of users who turn to VIZIO every day for a better TV experience.

今天，我也很高興地與大家分享，VIZIO 最近因我們對 ACR 技術的創新使用而榮獲技術和工程艾美獎。看到我們的卓越工程和創造力得到數十個行業、專家和同行的認可，我感到非常高興。很明顯，我們的勝利精神正在改變電視行業，並繼續使我們在廣告、測量和內容方面的合作夥伴以及每天轉向 VIZIO 以獲得更好電視體驗的數百萬用戶受益。

When the customer brings home a VIZIO TV, they're bringing home the combined power of hardware and software. We've been operating a business that's built on the combined power and the impact it has on VIZIO users. It is clear others in the marketplace have recognized this. The ability to seamlessly integrate new features and functionalities across our fleet is key to a great consumer experience. This past year, we also dramatically enhanced the user experience and expanded our content offering. Building on the successful growth of our WatchFree+ app.

當客戶將 VIZIO 電視帶回家時，他們將硬件和軟件的綜合力量帶回家。我們一直在經營一家建立在綜合實力及其對 VIZIO 用戶的影響之上的業務。很明顯，市場上的其他人已經認識到這一點。在我們的車隊中無縫集成新特性和功能的能力是良好消費者體驗的關鍵。在過去的一年裡，我們還顯著增強了用戶體驗並擴展了我們的內容供應。以我們 WatchFree+ 應用程序的成功發展為基礎。

We unveiled an upgraded design and improved user interface. The latest update brings a new look and feel, Intuitive Electronic Programming Guide, faster and easier navigation and personalization features as well. With all of these new enhancements, there is no surprise that WatchFree+ remains the #2 most-watched free ad-supported app on our platform. In addition to some of these new enhancements, we expanded our building streaming apps from partners like Starz, AMC+, FOX Sports, TikTok, Sling, Amazon Music and many more.

我們推出了升級的設計和改進的用戶界面。最新更新帶來了全新的外觀和感覺、直觀的電子編程指南、更快、更輕鬆的導航和個性化功能。有了所有這些新的增強功能，WatchFree+ 仍然是我們平台上排名第二的最受關注的免費廣告支持應用程序也就不足為奇了。除了其中一些新的增強功能外，我們還擴展了來自 Starz、AMC+、FOX Sports、TikTok、Sling、Amazon Music 等合作夥伴的構建流媒體應用程序。

During the fourth quarter, we grew our SmartCast active account base by 15% to over 17 million, and these users remain heavily engaged with time spent on our platform, growing 24% year-over-year. With such a seamless out of the box experience, it is no surprise that consumers spend most of their time on our TVs, streaming our fast content offering.

在第四季度，我們的 SmartCast 活躍賬戶數量增長了 15%，超過 1700 萬，這些用戶在我們平台上花費的時間仍然很活躍，同比增長 24%。有了這種開箱即用的無縫體驗，消費者將大部分時間花在我們的電視上，流式傳輸我們提供的快速內容也就不足為奇了。

With more user engagement and greater scale, we are in a strong position to support our advertising partners with more efficient and measurable marketing experience. Our advertiser relationships continue to expand as brands recognize the value of direct-to-device with our own inventory and ACR data give them on-screen validations and proof-of-campaign outcomes.

隨著更多的用戶參與和更大的規模，我們有能力通過更高效和可衡量的營銷體驗來支持我們的廣告合作夥伴。我們的廣告客戶關係繼續擴大，因為品牌認識到直接使用我們自己的庫存和 ACR 數據為他們提供屏幕驗證和活動證明結果的設備的價值。

During the quarter, we expanded our advertising client relationship with almost 400 advertising partners across verticals like automotive, media entertainment, CPG, quick service restaurants and retail. Our advertising business is growing rapidly, with revenue up 55% in 2022. We also recently announced that we concluded our 2023 upfront negotiations with more than $200 million in direct advertising commitments from agency holding companies.

在本季度，我們擴大了與近 400 個廣告合作夥伴的廣告客戶關係，涉及汽車、媒體娛樂、CPG、快餐店和零售等垂直行業。我們的廣告業務增長迅速，2022 年收入增長 55%。我們最近還宣布，我們結束了 2023 年的前期談判，獲得了代理控股公司超過 2 億美元的直接廣告承諾。

Turning to our Device segment. 2022 was a challenging year on our fund, but our team was well ahead of the curve. Our team navigated a difficult environment that was supply and then demand constraint. But despite all that, we continue to deliver award-winning product to the market. Our passion for innovation that supported on the hardware side with our new TV collections being recognized with16 editorial awards in 2022.

轉向我們的設備部分。 2022 年對我們的基金來說是充滿挑戰的一年，但我們的團隊遙遙領先。我們的團隊在供應和需求受限的困難環境中度過了難關。但儘管如此，我們繼續向市場提供屢獲殊榮的產品。我們對創新的熱情在硬件方面得到了支持，我們的新電視系列在 2022 年獲得了 16 項編輯獎。

More recently, we were named Wirecutter's Budget Pick for Best LED TV for our M-Series Quantum X Smart TV. Incredible value also trickles down to our Dolby Atmos products. And we were awarded the Best Home Theater Sound Bar of the Year for the M-Series Elevate. Thanks to the success of our dual business model, we had the opportunity to continue impacting in innovation to elevate our award winning devices even further.

最近，我們的 M 系列 Quantum X 智能電視被 Wirecutter 評為最佳 LED 電視的預算選擇。令人難以置信的價值也滲透到我們的杜比全景聲 (Dolby Atmos) 產品中。我們的 M 系列 Elevate 榮獲年度最佳家庭影院條形音箱獎。由於我們雙重商業模式的成功，我們有機會繼續影響創新，進一步提升我們屢獲殊榮的設備。

I'm very excited about what the future holds for us. And with a strong dedicated and disciplined team that is focused on innovating for the future to create a better consumer experience, there will be lot more to share in 2023. The overall business environment remains dynamic, but as always, we are focused on what we can control. And while advertising spending growth started strong in 2022, it was a softer end market to close the year. But we are cautiously optimistic for a stronger 2023. With the right team in place, we know we are in a great position to reap the benefits of operating a powerful dual business model as market conditions improve.

我對我們的未來感到非常興奮。憑藉一支敬業且紀律嚴明的強大團隊，專注於為未來創新以創造更好的消費者體驗，2023 年將有更多內容可以分享。整體商業環境仍然充滿活力，但一如既往，我們專注於我們的工作可以控制。儘管廣告支出增長在 2022 年開始強勁，但年底市場表現疲軟。但我們對更強大的 2023 年持謹慎樂觀態度。有了合適的團隊，我們知道隨著市場條件的改善，我們處於有利地位，可以從運營強大的雙重業務模式中獲益。

With that, I will now turn the call over to Adam to review our fourth quarter results in more detail.

有了這個，我現在將把電話轉給亞當，以更詳細地審查我們第四季度的業績。

Thanks, William. Before opening the call to questions, I'll take you through our fourth quarter results and discuss our outlook for Q1. Starting with the fourth quarter, total company revenue came in at $533 million. Breaking this down into our segments. Total Platform+ revenue grew 30% to a new quarterly record of $137 million. This represented 26% of total company revenue in the quarter, up from 17% a year ago.

謝謝，威廉。在開始提問之前，我將帶您了解我們第四季度的業績並討論我們對第一季度的展望。從第四季度開始，公司總收入為 5.33 億美元。將其分解為我們的細分市場。 Platform+ 總收入增長 30%，達到 1.37 億美元的季度新紀錄。這佔該季度公司總收入的 26%，高於一年前的 17%。

Growth in Platform+ revenue was driven by advertising, which was 25% to $103 million. This marks our first single quarter where advertising revenue surpassed $100 million, a great milestone for the team. Within our advertising business, we continue to expand our direct ad client relationship. Over the past year, we have expanded the number of brands we have worked with by 66% to over 1,400.

Platform+ 收入的增長是由廣告推動的，增長 25% 至 1.03 億美元。這標誌著我們的第一個單季度廣告收入超過 1 億美元，這對團隊來說是一個重要的里程碑。在我們的廣告業務中，我們繼續擴大我們的直接廣告客戶關係。在過去的一年裡，我們合作的品牌數量增加了 66%，達到 1,400 多個。

Advertisers across categories continue to place value on our premium streaming ad inventory and cross-platform offerings. In addition, the number of brands spending in our managed services offering, which provides an opportunity to access our real-time ACR targeting and analytics suite grew by 37%. The tools we provide advertisers are well recognized. From our owned and operated inventory to our unique data targeting and measurement capabilities. These assets create a great opportunity to gain wallet share for VIZIO amongst top advertisers investment plans.

跨類別的廣告商繼續看重我們的優質流媒體廣告庫存和跨平台產品。此外，在我們的託管服務產品上花費的品牌數量增長了 37%，這提供了訪問我們實時 ACR 定位和分析套件的機會。我們為廣告商提供的工具得到了廣泛認可。從我們擁有和經營的庫存到我們獨特的數據定位和測量能力。這些資產為 VIZIO 在頂級廣告商投資計劃中獲得錢包份額創造了絕佳機會。

Overall, we are highly encouraged by the 25% growth in our advertising revenue during the fourth quarter, despite the highly publicized downturn in the ad market late in the quarter, which led to revenue coming in just under our expected range. Our advertising growth rate relative to many of our peers showed tremendous strength in a tough environment.

總體而言，我們對第四季度廣告收入增長 25% 感到非常鼓舞，儘管本季度末廣告市場的低迷廣為人知，這導致收入略低於我們的預期範圍。在艱難的環境中，我們的廣告增長率相對於許多同行顯示出巨大的實力。

Non-advertising revenue grew 46% to $33 million. Within our non-advertising revenue, data licensing was again the largest contributor to growth. With additional strength from healthy demand for brand placement on our remote control buttons, data licensing was up 55% year-over-year.

非廣告收入增長 46% 至 3300 萬美元。在我們的非廣告收入中，數據許可再次成為增長的最大貢獻者。憑藉對我們遙控器按鈕上品牌植入的健康需求帶來的額外力量，數據許可同比增長 55%。

Our currency-grade viewership data is highly valuable in the marketplace and relied on by measurement companies, agencies and networks alike. While we anticipate the demand for this valuable data will drive continued growth, we expect the growth rate to begin to moderate in Q1, as we start to lap the step-up from the Nielsen deal which commenced around this time last year.

我們的貨幣級收視率數據在市場上非常有價值，並受到測量公司、機構和網絡等的依賴。雖然我們預計對這些有價值數據的需求將推動持續增長，但我們預計第一季度增長率將開始放緩，因為我們開始從去年這個時候左右開始的尼爾森交易中獲得提升。

Turning to our device segment. Total revenue was $397 million. The year-over-year decline in device revenue was due to the combination of lower average selling price on more aggressive promotion campaigns than a year ago and fewer smart TV shipments. TV unit sell-through volumes grew year-over-year as consumers responded favorably to the promotion offers.

轉向我們的設備部分。總收入為 3.97 億美元。設備收入的同比下降是由於比一年前更積極的促銷活動導致平均售價降低以及智能電視出貨量減少。由於消費者對促銷優惠反應良好，電視銷量同比增長。

As our mix of business continues to shift toward a larger contribution from our higher margin Platform+ business, total company gross profit grew 11% for the quarter to $86 million. Platform+ gross profit was a record $83 million, up 23% over the year ago period, representing around 97% of the total company's gross profit. This too came in just under our expected range for the quarter as the high margin advertising revenues slowed late in the quarter. Platform+ gross profit margin was still a solid 61%.

隨著我們的業務組合繼續轉向利潤率更高的 Platform+ 業務的更大貢獻，本季度公司總毛利潤增長 11% 至 8600 萬美元。 Platform+ 的毛利潤達到創紀錄的 8300 萬美元，比去年同期增長 23%，占公司毛利潤總額的 97% 左右。由於本季度末高利潤廣告收入放緩，這也略低於我們對該季度的預期範圍。 Platform+ 的毛利率仍然穩定在 61%。

Total company adjusted EBITDA for the quarter was $20 million, up 15% over the year ago period. As we stated previously, we remain vigilant in managing our SG&A expenses, while continuing to invest in new features and capabilities. We plan to remain focused on operational efficiencies and expense management to allow us to reinvest back into the business to support competitiveness and drive future growth opportunities.

本季度公司調整後的 EBITDA 總額為 2000 萬美元，比去年同期增長 15%。正如我們之前所說，我們在管理 SG&A 費用方面保持警惕，同時繼續投資於新特性和功能。我們計劃繼續專注於運營效率和費用管理，使我們能夠重新投資於業務，以支持競爭力並推動未來的增長機會。

Now turning to our key performance metrics. As William mentioned, our Q4 results highlight the growing success of our efforts to drive overall monetization across the platform. SmartCast ARPU grew to a record $20.30, up 31% over the year ago period. Total time spent streaming also outpaced all other time spent by our users as measured by 24% increase in SmartCast hours, against a 13% increase in total VIZIO hours.

現在轉向我們的關鍵績效指標。正如 William 所提到的，我們第四季度的業績突顯了我們為推動整個平台的整體貨幣化所做的努力越來越成功。 SmartCast ARPU 增長到創紀錄的 20.30 美元，比去年同期增長 31%。流式傳輸的總時間也超過了我們用戶花費的所有其他時間，SmartCast 時間增加了 24%，而 VIZIO 總時間增加了 13%。

User adoption of streaming on our platform continued its upward trajectory demonstrated by further growth in streaming time spent per active account. SmartCast active accounts grew by almost 800, 000 and 2.3 million year-over-year to a new record 17.4 million.

用戶在我們平台上對流媒體的採用繼續呈上升趨勢，這從每個活躍賬戶花費的流媒體時間進一步增長就可以看出。 SmartCast 活躍賬戶同比增長近 800、000 和 230 萬，達到創紀錄的 1740 萬。

So with that, let me now turn to what we expect for the first quarter. We are encouraged by the resurgence in advertising activity thus far in the quarter, particularly with respect to demand for video inventory. In this area, key categories for us include auto, insurance, pharma and telco, which are all showing a pickup in activity so far in the first quarter.

因此，現在讓我談談我們對第一季度的預期。我們對本季度迄今為止廣告活動的複蘇感到鼓舞，尤其是在視頻庫存需求方面。在這一領域，我們的主要類別包括汽車、保險、製藥和電信，這些類別在第一季度迄今都顯示出活躍度。

We do expect the media and entertainment category to lag as the industry works through their own priorities. That said, our data continues to support a compelling argument for advertising on our home screen as it is a highly visible and engaging placement right in the living room where intent to view could be higher.

我們確實預計媒體和娛樂類別會滯後，因為該行業會根據自己的優先事項開展工作。也就是說，我們的數據繼續支持在我們的主屏幕上投放廣告的令人信服的論點，因為它是一個高度可見且引人入勝的位置，就在起居室中，觀看的意圖可能更高。

On device, we expect the TV market to remain highly competitive. Our first-party viewership data informs our pricing strategies and we will continue to remain aggressive and seek to gain share particularly on units that support our business model best.

在設備方面，我們預計電視市場將保持高度競爭。我們的第一方收視率數據為我們的定價策略提供了信息，我們將繼續保持積極進取，並尋求獲得份額，尤其是在最能支持我們商業模式的單元上。

For Q1, we expect Platform+ revenue to come in between 114 and $119 million, representing 14% growth at the midpoint. Keep in mind that within Platform+ revenue, we are expecting video advertising to outpace home screen, and as I mentioned, we will begin to lap last year's data licensing deal with Nielsen, so the non-advertising growth rate should start to moderate from last year's accelerated pace.

對於第一季度，我們預計 Platform+ 收入將在 114 億美元至 1.19 億美元之間，中點增長率為 14%。請記住，在 Platform+ 收入中，我們預計視頻廣告將超過主屏幕，正如我所提到的，我們將開始與尼爾森達成去年的數據許可協議，因此非廣告增長率應該會從去年開始放緩加快步伐。

In addition, we are making investments in critical ad infrastructure to support our platform+ business and AI solutions to create efficiencies in engineering, support and logistics. We expect Platform+ gross profit of between 66 and $70 million for the quarter. And finally, we expect total company adjusted EBITDA in the range of flat to positive $5 million.

此外，我們正在對關鍵的廣告基礎設施進行投資，以支持我們的平台+業務和人工智能解決方案，從而提高工程、支持和物流方面的效率。我們預計本季度 Platform+ 的毛利潤在 66 至 7000 萬美元之間。最後，我們預計公司調整後的 EBITDA 總額將持平至正 500 萬美元。

In closing, advertising spending and user adoption of connected TV continues to be where the growth is across the industry. We know smart TV households continue to expand. Cord cutting is accelerating and the age of AVOD is here. VIZIO was incredibly well aligned to the benefit from these tailwinds. Since the launch of our Platform+ business only three years ago, we have successfully increased our active user base by 2.3x and grown ARPU by almost 4x. Looking forward, we now have greater scale and a stronger presence in the marketplace which puts us in a great position to continue to execute on our strategy and we are excited about the opportunities that lie ahead.

最後，廣告支出和聯網電視的用戶採用率仍然是整個行業的增長點。我們知道智能電視家庭繼續擴大。剪線加速，AVOD 時代來臨。 VIZIO 非常適合從這些順風中獲益。自三年前推出 Platform+ 業務以來，我們已成功將活躍用戶群增加了 2.3 倍，ARPU 增長了近 4 倍。展望未來，我們現在擁有更大的規模和更強的市場影響力，這使我們能夠繼續執行我們的戰略，我們對未來的機遇感到興奮。

With that, let's open up the call to questions. Operator?

有了這個，讓我們打開問題的電話。操作員？

(Operator Instructions) Our first question for today comes from Laura Martin of Needham.

（操作員說明）我們今天的第一個問題來自 Needham 的 Laura Martin。

My first question is for William around competitive development. So Roku has announced it's going to do an integrated operating system and TV, so we should take a bit re-lap on that, as you're right about that. But my question is, as an analyst is, does that mean that over the next two years, they, in theory, catch up with you with its integrated TV and hardware, that this becomes a price war because the only way to compete is then on price. And staying with competition, Amazon, Google and Roku all now have home devices as well as on the smart TVs where they own the hardware and software. So my question is, are you going to -- do you have an update us in a while and what's the in-homes device strategy is? And should we expect to see costs -- our expenses invested in home devices in 2023?

我的第一個問題是關於競爭發展的 William。所以 Roku 已經宣布它將做一個集成的操作系統和電視，所以我們應該重新考慮一下，因為你是對的。但我的問題是，作為一名分析師，這是否意味著在未來兩年內，理論上，他們會在集成電視和硬件方面趕上你，這將成為一場價格戰，因為唯一的競爭方式就是那時價格上。為了保持競爭，亞馬遜、谷歌和 Roku 現在都擁有家用設備以及他們擁有硬件和軟件的智能電視。所以我的問題是，你打算 - 你有一段時間更新我們嗎？家庭設備策略是什麼？我們是否應該期望看到成本——我們在 2023 年投資於家用設備的費用？

Laura, well, we've been doing this well in the last 20 years, so having December competition is really nothing new to us. Again, we've built a great deal of business model, which is I think everybody's envy. And -- but I do see the competition to be pretty strong in the next few years having the new players such as Roku coming in to compete in the device space directly. But we have experience and we have the knowledge and we'll be ready. And I think the competitors such as the new entry device maker will have a lot to learn in the next few years. And -- but we're ready to compete.

勞拉，好吧，我們在過去 20 年裡一直做得很好，所以舉辦 12 月的比賽對我們來說真的不是什麼新鮮事。同樣，我們已經建立了大量的商業模式，我認為這是每個人都羨慕的。而且——但我確實認為未來幾年競爭會非常激烈，Roku 等新玩家將直接進入設備領域進行競爭。但我們有經驗，我們有知識，我們會做好準備。而且我認為新的入門設備製造商等競爭對手在未來幾年將有很多東西要學習。而且 - 但我們已經準備好競爭。

And as far as your second question on connected home, I think with the macroeconomy situation, I don't think that's for our interest to spend a lot of money on connected home as of now. And I do believe the money will be spent more wisely, just on our TV. I think we had lot more room to grow, a lot more innovation we can put on the TV and we really don't need to build our life out to control our life at home. So we're pretty excited with our current opportunities. So as of now, we do not have connected home strategy at the time.

至於你關於聯網家庭的第二個問題，我認為在宏觀經濟形勢下，我認為目前在聯網家庭上花費大量資金並不符合我們的利益。而且我確實相信這筆錢會花得更明智，只花在我們的電視上。我認為我們有更多的成長空間，我們可以在電視上進行更多的創新，我們真的不需要建立自己的生活來控制我們的家庭生活。因此，我們對當前的機會感到非常興奮。所以截至目前，我們當時還沒有連接家庭戰略。

And then my follow-up question is for Michael. You guys have continued to really do a great job of adding new advertisers last quarter and this quarter. My question is, when you -- do you break the new category and then a lot of guys follow you in? Is there any pattern recognition we can see in the type of new advertisers you have adding over the last six months?

然後我的後續問題是給邁克爾的。上個季度和本季度，你們在增加新廣告商方面繼續做得很好。我的問題是，當你 - 你是否打破了新類別然後很多人跟隨你？在過去六個月中您添加的新廣告商類型中，我們是否可以看到任何模式識別？

Well, I think, look, coming out of Q4 there was definitely some softness in the ad market. I think we saw it, especially in December. But as you pointed out, in the face of that softness, we were able to add once again, I believe, a 130 new advertisers to the platform and that's helped us push to grow platform revenue 30% on the quarter year-over-year finish out 55% up for the full year. So positive trends there.

好吧，我認為，從第四季度開始，廣告市場肯定有些疲軟。我想我們看到了，尤其是在 12 月。但正如您指出的那樣，面對這種疲軟，我相信我們能夠再次向該平台添加 130 個新廣告商，這幫助我們推動平台收入在本季度同比增長 30%全年完成 55%。那裡有積極的趨勢。

In terms of where we're seeing the growth in categories, I think what was exciting for us is, we're starting to significantly grow other categories outside of media and entertainment like spend from CPG, QSR, pharma, all those categories were up a 100% year-over-year -- quarter-over-quarter on the year. So couple that, with the significant upfront commitments we have, while there is softness in Q1 and I think it was mentioned we're cautiously optimistic about the Q1 rebound we are seeing, I think we're well positioned for continued growth and continued expansion of those categories specifically.

就我們看到的類別增長而言，我認為令我們興奮的是，我們開始顯著增長媒體和娛樂以外的其他類別，例如來自 CPG、QSR、製藥的支出，所有這些類別都在增加同比增長 100%——同比增長 100%。因此，再加上我們有大量的前期承諾，雖然第一季度表現疲軟，我認為有人提到我們對我們看到的第一季度反彈持謹慎樂觀態度，但我認為我們已做好持續增長和持續擴張的準備這些類別的具體。

Our next question comes from Tom Champion of Piper Sandler.

我們的下一個問題來自 Piper Sandler 的 Tom Champion。

This is Jim on for Tom. I guess first on advertising, is there anything to call out from sort of the off platform component that could be having an impact? And second, I guess, are you making any changes on how you run the business in a more growth constrained environment?

這是湯姆的吉姆。我想首先是在廣告方面，是否有什麼可以從可能產生影響的平台外組件中提出來的？其次，我想，您是否對在增長更加受限的環境中經營業務的方式做出任何改變？

Yes, I think on the off platform question, I'll take that. Yes. We see continued growth from Household Connect. I think today, it is the fastest growing ad vertical we have and as a reminder, Household Connect is our audience extension product that enables us to recognize viewership data or what people are watching on the screen and target them inside the home and outside the home and other devices, whether that be mobile, desktop, tablet.

是的，我認為在平台外問題上，我會接受。是的。我們看到 Household Connect 的持續增長。我認為今天，它是我們擁有的增長最快的垂直廣告，提醒一下，Household Connect 是我們的受眾擴展產品，它使我們能夠識別收視率數據或人們在屏幕上觀看的內容，並將他們定位在家庭內外和其他設備，無論是移動設備、台式機還是平板電腦。

And for us, it's been a great product for us, it's helped us expand the TAM off platform, it has helped us expand or deliver incremental reach for advertisers, allows us to tap into some new budgets. And we're actually continuing to add partnerships to build more scale there. So, we recently launched a partnership with Tapad to drive additional capabilities as well. So while it is the fastest growing category, it's still coming off a smaller base. So it's an important component for us for those reasons I mentioned, but video will still be the largest acceleration for us in 2023 specifically within WatchFree+.

對我們來說，這對我們來說是一個很棒的產品，它幫助我們將 TAM 擴展到平台之外，它幫助我們擴大或為廣告商提供增量覆蓋，讓我們能夠利用一些新的預算。我們實際上正在繼續增加合作夥伴關係以在那裡建立更大的規模。因此，我們最近與 Tapad 建立了合作夥伴關係，以推動其他功能。因此，雖然它是增長最快的類別，但它的基數仍然較小。因此，由於我提到的那些原因，它對我們來說是一個重要的組成部分，但視頻在 2023 年仍將是我們最大的加速，特別是在 WatchFree+ 中。

Yes, Jim, this is Adam. On your second question, if I understood it correctly, just thinking about the macro environment, you're phrasing it as a growth constrained environment. I think what we're doing from a management standpoint is really focusing, as I mentioned on controlling what we can control, which is principally around our costs. We're really looking at efficiency, we're looking at headcount growth. As you know, over the last couple of years, we've been in a pretty rapid expansion mode. We really increased the size of our ad sales team, our ad tech capabilities, our engineering resources and that was an important investment to sort of get us to where we are today and build up to the scale that we've now created.

是的，吉姆，這是亞當。關於你的第二個問題，如果我理解正確的話，只考慮宏觀環境，你將其表述為增長受限的環境。我認為從管理的角度來看，我們正在做的事情真的很集中，正如我提到的控制我們可以控制的東西，這主要是圍繞我們的成本。我們真正關注的是效率，我們關注的是員工人數的增長。如您所知，在過去幾年中，我們一直處於快速擴張模式。我們確實增加了廣告銷售團隊的規模、我們的廣告技術能力、我們的工程資源，這是一項重要的投資，可以讓我們達到今天的水平，並建立我們現在創造的規模。

And so from here forward, we are going to be a bit more cautious about growth in expenses. We're looking at headcount, very, very carefully. But we also want to continue to invest in the features and capabilities that are going to bring that future growth. So in this environment, every dollar we can save allows us to put that back into the business to be competitive on the device side, to attracting team the right kind of talent, and also set us up to take advantage of the rebound when the macro environment strengthens.

因此，從現在開始，我們將對支出增長更加謹慎。我們正在非常非常仔細地查看員工人數。但我們也希望繼續投資於將帶來未來增長的特性和功能。因此，在這種環境下，我們可以節省的每一美元都可以讓我們將其重新投入到業務中，以在設備方面具有競爭力，吸引團隊合適的人才，並讓我們在宏觀經濟時利用反彈環境加強。

But what we want to do is, basically get the company in a position to really be ready to drive significant growth with a stronger tailwind. But even given that as you heard on this call here today, even in a relatively growth constrained environment, our ad business grew 25% in the fourth quarter, 55% for the year, really strong growth because we are in the middle of the rapidly growing part of the market and we're continuing to take share within that rapidly growing part of the market. So we're just going to continue to set ourselves up for future success.

但我們想要做的是，基本上讓公司能夠真正準備好以更強勁的順風推動顯著增長。但即使考慮到正如你今天在這裡的電話會議上聽到的那樣，即使在增長相對受限的環境中，我們的廣告業務在第四季度增長了 25%，全年增長了 55%，增長非常強勁，因為我們正處於快速發展的中期不斷增長的市場份額，我們將繼續在快速增長的市場份額中佔有一席之地。因此，我們將繼續為未來的成功做好準備。

Our next question comes from Cory Carpenter of JPMorgan.

我們的下一個問題來自摩根大通的 Cory Carpenter。

Maybe Adam, one for you, and one for William. Just on EBITDA sticking to that. Last quarter, I think 1Q was the lowest profit quarter of the year. Just curious maybe any color you can give us on how you expect that expenses to progress through the year. Is it reasonable to think 1Q would be the ballpoint again in 2023? And then for William, just hoping you could talk a bit about your decision earlier this week to expand the Board.

也許亞當，一個給你，一個給威廉。就 EBITDA 堅持這一點。上個季度，我認為第一季度是今年利潤最低的一個季度。只是好奇，也許您可以給我們任何關於您預計這一年的支出進展情況的顏色。認為 1Q 將在 2023 年再次成為圓珠筆是否合理？然後是 William，希望你能談談本週早些時候你擴大董事會的決定。

Yes. Cory, yes. So typically given the cadence of the business and seasonality Q1 does tend to be a lower period, obviously from the -- on the device side we're coming off of the holidays, which creates a lot of demand and then into the Q1 where there is some opportunities like the Super Bowl, for example, but we also are mindful of the environment and the consumer demand level. So as we said before, we want to be competitive, we're going to be aggressive on pricing. Those strategies are going to be informed by the data that we have around usage, we understand and look at our pricing strategies from a customer lifetime value standpoint. So that all gets factored into our considerations. We're also mindful of the mixed signals that are going on in the macroeconomic environment.

是的。科里，是的。因此，通常考慮到業務節奏和季節性，Q1 確實往往是一個較低的時期，很明顯，在設備方面，我們即將結束假期，這會產生大量需求，然後進入 Q1 那裡例如，像超級碗這樣的機會，但我們也注意到環境和消費者需求水平。因此，正如我們之前所說，我們希望具有競爭力，我們將在定價上積極進取。這些策略將根據我們所掌握的使用數據來製定，我們從客戶生命週期價值的角度理解並審視我們的定價策略。因此，所有這些都會納入我們的考慮範圍。我們還注意到宏觀經濟環境中正在發生的混合信號。

On the advertising side, as Mike said, January was a little bit slow, February has picked up a lot. Again, cautiously optimistic as the term, we're certainly hopeful that those high margin dollars come in, but given the mixed signals out there, I think it's prudent to be conservative on that front.

在廣告方面，正如邁克所說，1 月份有點慢，2 月份回升了很多。再次，謹慎樂觀這個詞，我們當然希望那些高利潤的美元進來，但考慮到那裡的混合信號，我認為在這方面保持謹慎是謹慎的。

So I think that sets us up. And then we'll see how the year progresses, what kind of strategy, we needed to deploy to move product on the device side? Because remember, as we sell through units into homes, that's the foundation for us to then grow the flywheel against our Platform business, right? And so being there, being competitive, gaining homes, that's really core to the long-term success.

所以我認為這讓我們做好了準備。然後我們將看到這一年的進展情況，我們需要部署什麼樣的策略來在設備端移動產品？因為請記住，當我們通過單位銷售到家庭時，這是我們隨後針對我們的平台業務發展飛輪的基礎，對吧？因此，在那裡、具有競爭力、獲得家園，這才是長期成功的真正核心。

This is William. So yes, I couldn't be more excited that Mike Mohan joined us on our Board. He brought to us years and years of experience in the consumer electronics space, retail, hardware, software, logistics, supply chain. I don't think we can find a better candidate to help us to keep on -- to help us, guide us, to grow our business and also he has a great experience beyond multiple different boards and he can help us -- the Board such as Bloomin' Brands, Petco, Jackson Family Winery, I think can really help us to guide us to the next stage.

這是威廉。所以，是的，我對 Mike Mohan 加入我們的董事會感到非常興奮。他為我們帶來了在消費電子領域、零售、硬件、軟件、物流、供應鏈方面多年的經驗。我不認為我們可以找到更好的候選人來幫助我們繼續 - 幫助我們，指導我們，發展我們的業務，而且他在多個不同的董事會之外擁有豐富的經驗，他可以幫助我們 - 董事會比如Bloomin' Brands、Petco、Jackson Family Winery，我認為真的可以幫助我們引導我們進入下一個階段。

Our next question comes from Ben Swinburne from Morgan Stanley.

我們的下一個問題來自摩根士丹利的 Ben Swinburne。

Two questions, maybe first on media and entertainment. I think, Adam, you called out weakness there, which I think we're all aware of the drivers of that. Can you help us think about the exposure between home screen and video advertising? It sounds like that's a bigger factor, and home screen just wanted to hear you sort of confirm that and walk us through how we should think about that part of the business as we move through '23, and where you think that might be a point of pressure and where it might actually start to alleviate itself?

兩個問題，也許首先是關於媒體和娛樂。我認為，亞當，你指出了那裡的弱點，我認為我們都知道其中的驅動因素。你能幫我們想想主屏幕和視頻廣告之間的曝光嗎？聽起來這是一個更大的因素，主屏幕只是想听聽您確認這一點，並引導我們了解在我們走過 23 年時我們應該如何考慮這部分業務，以及您認為這可能是一個重點壓力以及它可能真正開始緩解的地方？

And then more on the television and smart TV side, you guys have a sense of whether you gained share last year in sort of North American marketplace, and do you expect the overall market to grow in '23? I know you're not typically forecasting for the industry, but given the pressures we've seen in the last couple of years, would appreciate your perspective.

然後更多在電視和智能電視方面，你們對去年是否在北美市場獲得份額有所了解，你們預計整個市場在 23 年會增長嗎？我知道你通常不會對這個行業進行預測，但考慮到我們在過去幾年中看到的壓力，希望你能發表看法。

Yes. Ben. So as you can imagine, the home screen is very prone for the media and entertainment category. Obviously, highlighting not only content, but also the services themselves. It's also a great place where we can run promotions with various partners. We've done deals with virtual MVPDs for example or Apple TV service or various others on that home screen. So I think there is a lot of reasons for those partners to understand the power of our home screen, whether they're trying to attract or retain viewers, as well as potential new subscribers to their services.

是的。本。所以你可以想像，主屏幕很容易出現媒體和娛樂類別。顯然，不僅要突出內容，還要突出服務本身。這也是我們可以與各種合作夥伴進行促銷活動的好地方。例如，我們已經在主屏幕上完成了虛擬 MVPD 或 Apple TV 服務或其他各種服務的交易。所以我認為這些合作夥伴有很多理由了解我們主屏幕的力量，無論他們是想吸引還是留住觀眾，以及他們服務的潛在新訂戶。

And so, I think that it is a high margin revenue source for us. So if there is a mix shift there, it's something just to consider as we go through the dynamic. Video is going to continue to outpace the growth of home screen. We certainly been planning for that and that is factored into our considerations and forecasts. But it's a very effective destination right there in the home, right where, as I mentioned, where viewers are intending to view, it can be a better place for a content company to promote themselves. Mike, do you want anything to the dynamics of that.

因此，我認為這對我們來說是一個高利潤的收入來源。因此，如果那裡存在混合轉變，那麼在我們經歷動態時就需要考慮這一點。視頻的增長速度將繼續超過主屏幕。我們當然一直在為此做計劃，並將其納入我們的考慮和預測中。但它是一個非常有效的目的地，就在家裡，正如我提到的，觀眾打算觀看的地方，它可以成為內容公司宣傳自己的更好場所。邁克，你想要什麼動態嗎？

Yes. I think when we think about the home screen as well, it's not just limited to media and entertainment. And I think that's an important growth opportunity for us, especially this year. Obviously, home screen is an incredibly valuable tool for us for monetization. It's the first thing, consumers see when they turn on the TV. I'd continue to say we've got the best UI for search and discovery in the marketplace. But those huge styles, right, the great creative or ability to leverage data creates other opportunities. So for us, we've seen an expansion in what we consider non-endemic or non-media and entertainment sponsorships.

是的。我認為當我們同樣考慮主屏幕時，它不僅限於媒體和娛樂。我認為這對我們來說是一個重要的增長機會，尤其是今年。顯然，主屏幕對於我們的貨幣化來說是一個非常有價值的工具。這是消費者打開電視時看到的第一件事。我會繼續說我們擁有市場上用於搜索和發現的最佳 UI。但是那些巨大的風格，對，偉大的創意或利用數據的能力創造了其他機會。所以對我們來說，我們看到了我們認為非地方性或非媒體和娛樂贊助的擴張。

I think in Q4, we were up 37% year-over-year bringing partners like (inaudible) to sponsor our Halloween collection or McDonald's in to sponsor our football kickoff collection. We're also able to touch kind of outside of what we would consider the core kind of app partnerships. We've expanded our relationships with studios right, working closely with them, in particular to boost kind of the impact of box office premieres. And then we see a lot of opportunities in leveraging the data we have to track gameplay and expand into the gaming category tied into our home screen.

我認為在第四季度，我們同比增長 37%，讓（聽不清）等合作夥伴贊助我們的萬聖節系列或麥當勞贊助我們的足球開球系列。我們還能夠觸及我們認為核心應用程序合作夥伴關係之外的某種東西。我們已經擴大了與工作室的關係，與他們密切合作，特別是為了提高票房首映的影響力。然後我們看到了很多機會，可以利用我們擁有的數據來跟踪遊戲玩法，並擴展到與我們的主屏幕相關的遊戲類別。

So as Adam pointed out, video will continue to grow faster than home screen, but from a home screen standpoint, there continues to be good opportunities for us to expand our customer base outside of core media and entertainment.

因此，正如 Adam 指出的那樣，視頻的增長速度將繼續快於主屏幕，但從主屏幕的角度來看，我們仍然有很好的機會在核心媒體和娛樂之外擴展我們的客戶群。

And then on the market share point, yes, we don't -- we're not predicting necessarily the overall market, but we do look at some third-party research out there. I've seen a range of kind of what call sort of flattish for the year. Remember we're coming off of still the kind of post-COVID period, where there was a big demand that surge and then there were supply chain problems, and then now, we were facing inflation and constraints on consumer discretionary spending.

然後在市場份額方面，是的，我們沒有——我們不一定預測整個市場，但我們確實在看一些第三方研究。今年我看到了一系列所謂的平淡。請記住，我們仍處於後 COVID 時期，需求激增，然後出現供應鏈問題，然後現在，我們面臨通貨膨脹和消費者可自由支配支出的限制。

So we understand that and we're going to be competitive in that marketplace. We think we've got a great value proposition to consumers. We're bringing out new features adding more content to the platform making it just a better and better overall experience for our consumers. And we think we've got a great voice in the market on that.

所以我們明白這一點，我們將在那個市場上具有競爭力。我們認為我們對消費者有很大的價值主張。我們正在推出新功能，為平台添加更多內容，為我們的消費者提供越來越好的整體體驗。我們認為我們在市場上有很大的發言權。

And so, part of it will be pricing. We're going to have strategic pricing plans in the market as we did last year. As you may recall, last year we were able to go out and stimulate a lot of reaction to our TVs with our 50-inch and 40-inch. But we have the number one and number two selling TVs in the market through most of last year. So we'll look for opportunities to stimulate demand and play in that marketplace, but overall it's about just increasing our installed base, increasing our active account base and driving ARPU after that.

因此，其中一部分將是定價。我們將像去年一樣在市場上製定戰略定價計劃。您可能還記得，去年我們能夠出去並用我們的 50 英寸和 40 英寸電視激發了很多反響。但在去年的大部分時間裡，我們的電視銷量分別位居市場第一和第二。因此，我們將尋找機會刺激需求並在該市場中發揮作用，但總的來說，這只是增加我們的安裝基礎，增加我們的活躍賬戶基礎並在此之後推動 ARPU。

Our next question comes from Steve Cahall from Wells Fargo.

我們的下一個問題來自富國銀行的 Steve Cahall。

Maybe first, just wondering what kind of growth you're expecting this year in SmartCast hours. It's remain actually pretty robust in terms of the growth rate year-on-year, but I know you've talked over the last few quarters about trying to introduce more products that are designed to get to more kind of the primary TV in the house. So just wondering if you're seeing any of that benefit mix shift tailwind yet or if it's a little bit too early?

也許首先，只是想知道您預計今年 SmartCast 小時數會有什麼樣的增長。就同比增長率而言，它實際上仍然非常強勁，但我知道你在過去幾個季度中一直在談論嘗試推出更多旨在獲得更多家庭主要電視的產品.所以只是想知道您是否看到任何這種好處混合轉變順風，或者是否為時過早？

And then just as a follow-up on AVOD services like Netflix and Disney+ and HBO, as they really pushing more into AVOD and I think that your demographic overlap is maybe more to the AVOD-centric consumer. Is there an opportunity there, that you've been able to tap into to be a marketing partner with any of those services and is that something that could sort of supports your home screen revenue as we kind of go through the softer macro patch?

然後就像 Netflix、Disney+ 和 HBO 等 AVOD 服務的後續行動一樣，因為他們確實更多地推動了 AVOD，我認為您的人口重疊可能更多地是針對以 AVOD 為中心的消費者。那裡是否有機會，您已經能夠利用成為任何這些服務的營銷合作夥伴，並且當我們經歷更溫和的宏觀補丁時，這是否可以支持您的主屏幕收入？

Sure. I'll -- maybe I'll tackle the first one and then hand it over to Mike. To your point about growth, we really focused on it from a standpoint of engagement, right. We're focused on bringing in more and more content that suits what our viewers are looking for. That's what I want the places where our ACR data is so valuable, right, it informs us about what kind of content our users are looking for one, what they already consumed. And so that helps us as we bring new channels into WatchFree+, as we partner with additional ad partners on the platform and bring that in, continuing to feed that desire for content is really important.

當然。我會——也許我會解決第一個問題，然後將其交給邁克。對於你關於增長的觀點，我們真的從參與的角度關注它，對吧。我們專注於引入越來越多的內容來滿足觀眾的需求。這就是我想要我們的 ACR 數據如此有價值的地方，對吧，它告訴我們用戶正在尋找什麼樣的內容，他們已經消費了什麼。因此，這有助於我們將新渠道引入 WatchFree+，因為我們與平台上的其他廣告合作夥伴合作並將其引入，繼續滿足對內容的需求非常重要。

As we look at SmartCast hours per active account, it was up 7% quarter year-over-year in the fourth quarter, which is really good, but it's also shows that that's the third consecutive quarter of growth in hours per active account since we had to kind of lap against the big surgeons from the COVID dynamics. So we're encouraged that our viewers are understanding the value prop are bringing, they're understanding more and more about the content that's available, they're engaging in that content.

當我們查看每個活躍賬戶的 SmartCast 小時數時，第四季度同比增長 7%，這非常好，但它也表明這是自我們以來每個活躍賬戶的小時數連續第三個季度增長不得不從 COVID 動態中對抗大外科醫生。因此，我們感到鼓舞的是，我們的觀眾正在理解價值支柱帶來的價值，他們越來越了解可用的內容，他們正在參與這些內容。

Obviously the macro elements of cord cutting has certainly play right into our favor on this topic. And as people begin to stream and have a good experience streaming, they continue to stream more and more, and we're starting to see that really show up in our data. And so, everything we do from a user experience standpoint is to help drive engagement, increase the probability of someone spend a little more time ideally on ad supported concept that we control the inventory and that helps us drive that monetization. So more to come there, but we continue to focus on and across every corner of the company. Mike?

顯然，剪線的宏觀因素在這個話題上肯定對我們有利。隨著人們開始流媒體並獲得良好的流媒體體驗，他們繼續越來越多地流媒體，我們開始看到它真正出現在我們的數據中。因此，從用戶體驗的角度來看，我們所做的一切都是為了幫助推動參與，增加人們在理想情況下花更多時間在我們控制庫存並幫助我們推動貨幣化的廣告支持概念上的可能性。所以還有更多的人來到那裡，但我們繼續關注並跨越公司的每一個角落。麥克風？

Yes. Steve, I'll take the second. Look, I think from a marketing partnership standpoint, we got great relationships with all the partnerships, you mentioned, right. We're one of the largest distribution players in this space, I think you just referenced, we continue to drive an increase in significant time spent in engagement. And we have a customer that has an affinity for ad supported content. So we have been and we'll, I expect to continue to be and grow more the marketing partnerships we have with these partners as they dive into -- further into AVOD. I think in general, too, it's good, really good for the space. I mean these guys in the AVOD marketplace. I think we've talked about it in the past, but there still a huge gap between time spent on smart TVs, time spent streaming versus linear dollars or dollars pumping in, and I think those linear dollars as they shift into the connected TV space, I think more of these players with premium content will help drive more and more of that shift out of linear into connected TV, so.

是的。史蒂夫，我要第二個。看，我認為從營銷合作夥伴關係的角度來看，我們與所有合作夥伴關係都很好，你提到過，對。我們是這個領域最大的分銷商之一，我想你剛才提到了，我們繼續推動增加參與度。我們有一個客戶對廣告支持的內容有親和力。因此，我們已經並且我們將繼續與這些合作夥伴建立更多的營銷合作夥伴關係，因為他們深入 - 進一步進入 AVOD。我也認為總的來說，這很好，對空間來說真的很好。我指的是 AVOD 市場中的這些人。我想我們過去曾討論過這個問題，但花在智能電視上的時間、花在流媒體上的時間與線性美元或投入的美元之間仍然存在巨大差距，我認為這些線性美元正在轉移到聯網電視領域，我認為更多擁有優質內容的播放器將有助於推動越來越多的人從線性電視轉向聯網電視，所以。

Our next question comes from Wamsi Mohan from Bank of America.

我們的下一個問題來自美國銀行的 Wamsi Mohan。

It's Ruplu filling in for Wamsi today. You had a good upfront commitments last year for the 2023 season more than $200 million. So far have you seen any push outs or cancellations in those upfront commitments? And then as you head into the current season, the 2024 upfront, do you think there'll be a greater percent of advertising dollars moving towards the upfront versus the scatter market? And is your strategy changing any -- as you head into this year's upfront?

今天是 Ruplu 代替 Wamsi。去年，你們為 2023 賽季做出了超過 2 億美元的良好預付款承諾。到目前為止，您是否看到這些前期承諾有任何延期或取消？然後，當您進入當前季節，即 2024 年前期時，您是否認為與分散市場相比，會有更大比例的廣告資金流向前期市場？當您進入今年的前期時，您的策略是否有任何改變？

Also, what's with the current upfront. No, we're still progressing well as you mentioned we closed over $200 million in upfront commitments last year. We're very happy with the progression that we've had and I think what we're seeing is it helped us as we mentioned, expand into a lot of new verticals or a lot of new categories. So I mentioned before that we grew CPG, QSR pharma or were up over 100% on the quarter year-over-year, right. A lot of that is driven based on upfront commitments that we worked with some of those partners on.

另外，當前的預付款是什麼。不，正如您提到的那樣，我們仍然進展順利，去年我們完成了超過 2 億美元的預付款承諾。我們對我們取得的進展感到非常滿意，我認為我們所看到的是它幫助我們正如我們提到的那樣，擴展到許多新的垂直領域或許多新類別。所以我之前提到過，我們增長了 CPG、QSR 製藥，或者在本季度同比增長超過 100%，對吧。其中很多是基於我們與其中一些合作夥伴合作的前期承諾。

In terms of our strategy for this year, we haven't announced the date yet, but we will be participating once again in the new fronts. And in terms of our focus, I think we're positioned exceptionally well to grow our upfront commitments once again this year. I think there will be more dollars poured into the upfront for connected television. And I think with our distribution continuing to grow as one of the largest players in the space, I think over 17 million now with the time spent and engagement more impression opportunities, as well as with all the core products, we have. So WatchFree+, our first-party data that we have, especially our viewing data as well as the home screen. I think we're well positioned to capture the increase in dollars this next year.

就我們今年的戰略而言，我們還沒有宣布日期，但我們將再次參與新戰線。就我們的重點而言，我認為我們今年處於非常有利的地位，可以再次增加我們的前期承諾。我認為會有更多的資金投入到聯網電視的前期。而且我認為隨著我們的分銷持續增長，成為該領域最大的參與者之一，我認為現在有超過 1700 萬人花費的時間和參與更多的印像機會，以及我們擁有的所有核心產品。所以 WatchFree+，我們擁有的第一方數據，尤其是我們的觀看數據和主屏幕。我認為我們已準備好抓住明年美元的增長。

If I can ask a question on EBITDA. I think your guidance for 1Q is just slightly lower than the Street. Any thoughts on what are the main areas of spend for this year? And when you think about OpEx control versus the need to spend on your ad tech platform as well as the fact that you have some more competition on the TV space, any early thoughts on what EBITDA can be for the full year or maybe on a year-over-year comparison to 2022? Any thoughts on annual EBITDA?

如果我可以問一個關於 EBITDA 的問題。我認為您對 1Q 的指導略低於華爾街。對今年的主要支出領域有何想法？當你考慮 OpEx 控制與在廣告技術平台上花費的需要以及你在電視領域有更多競爭這一事實時，任何關於全年或可能一年的 EBITDA 的早期想法-與 2022 年相比？對年度 EBITDA 有什麼想法嗎？

Yes. As you know, we don't guide to full year EBITDA at this time, but I can give you a little sense of kind of some of the factors to think about as the year will progress. And I think also -- note that in the first quarter, I think if you look at the guidance which we do give around Platform+ revenue, and Platform+ gross profit dollars, you see the margin coming down a little bit there. Part of that has to do with actually a step-up on some cloud infrastructure that we need to make an investment in to support the ongoing growth of the business.

是的。如您所知，我們目前不提供全年 EBITDA 的指南，但我可以讓您了解一些隨著今年的進展而需要考慮的因素。而且我還認為 - 請注意，在第一季度，我認為如果你看看我們圍繞平台 + 收入和平台 + 毛利潤美元給出的指導，你會發現那裡的利潤率有所下降。其中一部分實際上與我們需要投資以支持業務持續增長的某些雲基礎設施的升級有關。

I believe that we're going to scale against that step-up in cost as the year progresses. So that will probably help ease the headwind of that a bit as the year progresses. Other factors will be mix of advertising business on the Platform+ side as we talked about, video is going to outpace growth in the home screen that is a little bit different margin profile than home screen as we've mentioned before. So that's a consideration in it.

我相信，隨著時間的推移，我們將按比例增加成本。因此，隨著時間的推移，這可能有助於緩解這一不利因素。其他因素將是我們談到的 Platform+ 方面的廣告業務組合，視頻將超過主屏幕的增長，這與我們之前提到的主屏幕的利潤率略有不同。所以這是一個考慮因素。

And then the question will be, how aggressive are we going to be and do we need to be on moving device, smart TVs in the marketplace. We know it's going to be competitive. We're planning for it to be competitive, but we're also looking for efficiencies in the operations overall to help us fund that competitiveness. So lots of puts and takes in there, but we'll see how the year progresses. And we're going to do what's physically smart for our business, and obviously as I said before, set us up for significant growth as the macro environment improves.

然後問題將是，我們將變得多麼積極，我們是否需要在市場上移動設備、智能電視上。我們知道這將具有競爭力。我們計劃使其具有競爭力，但我們也在尋求整體運營效率，以幫助我們為這種競爭力提供資金。那裡有很多投入和投入，但我們會看到這一年的進展情況。而且我們將為我們的業務做一些物理上聰明的事情，顯然正如我之前所說的那樣，隨著宏觀環境的改善，我們將實現顯著增長。

Our next question comes from Nick Zangler of Stephens.

我們的下一個問題來自 Stephens 的 Nick Zangler。

Wondering if you could talk about the potential to drive further engagement on WatchFree+ and maybe particularly in light of streaming services like HBO Max making their broader library of content available to some of the fast channels out there. I would imagine for those looking to grow distribution, WatchFree+ is an ideal destination, but just your thoughts on your ability to form new partnerships to grow WatchFree+.

想知道您是否可以談談推動 WatchFree+ 進一步參與的潛力，尤其是考慮到像 HBO Max 這樣的流媒體服務使他們更廣泛的內容庫可供一些快速頻道使用。我想對於那些希望增加分銷的人來說，WatchFree+ 是一個理想的目的地，但只是你對建立新合作夥伴關係以發展 WatchFree+ 的能力的想法。

Yes. On the first side, look from a home -- WatchFree+ engagement standpoint, our home screen is the best tool we have available to drive viewership in the WatchFree+. Not only have we grown our distribution and grown the time spent. But it's the first thing you see when you turn your television on, right. That's a hugely valuable tool for us to drive promotion. In Q4 alone, we saw a 72% growth in search and discovery during the holiday season. So very impactful and we'll continue to leverage that to promote the content offerings we have available to our consumers.

是的。首先，從家庭角度來看——從 WatchFree+ 參與的角度來看，我們的主屏幕是我們可以用來提高 WatchFree+ 收視率的最佳工具。我們不僅增加了發行量，還增加了花費的時間。但這是您打開電視時看到的第一件事，對吧。這是我們推動促銷的一個非常有價值的工具。僅在第四季度，我們就發現節日期間的搜索和發現量增長了 72%。非常有影響力，我們將繼續利用它來推廣我們為消費者提供的內容產品。

On top of that we have the ability to leverage our viewing data, right, understanding what type of content household views and watches that allows us to source and promote specific types of content they may want to watch within the WatchFree+ environment, right. And that's a big advantage for us owning the platform, and I would say, a key part to us becoming the #2 free ad-supported app on our platform.

最重要的是，我們有能力利用我們的觀看數據，了解家庭觀看和觀看的內容類型，使我們能夠在 WatchFree+ 環境中採購和推廣他們可能想觀看的特定類型的內容，對吧。這對我們擁有該平台來說是一個很大的優勢，我想說，這是我們成為我們平台上排名第二的免費廣告支持應用程序的關鍵部分。

In terms of your second question around -- look, we've got great relationships with all the big content players in the space. We are in constant discussions with them around a lot of different opportunities. I think for us, we're always looking at what the best use of capital is, and I think as those relationships continue to expand, we'll continue to find opportunities to bring in more -- bigger partnerships and more of that type of content.

關於你的第二個問題——看，我們與該領域的所有大型內容播放器都建立了良好的關係。我們一直在與他們討論許多不同的機會。我認為對我們來說，我們一直在尋找資本的最佳用途，而且我認為隨著這些關係的不斷擴大，我們將繼續尋找機會引入更多——更大的合作夥伴關係以及更多此類合作夥伴關係。內容。

I was just going to add to that, as we think about, we talked a lot about WatchFree+ there, but also just the broader App launches. We launched 17 additional apps to the platform in the fourth quarter alone, ranging from FOX Sports to AMC+ to even at best of Roblox which I know my kids are watching a lot of. So that is the whole point bringing more content, promoting that content. It gives those app owners an opportunity to then promote themselves on our platform in the home screen all to drive engagement and audience origination for themselves, and then we have opportunity to monetize them. And if -- most, if not, all those cases add available inventory in those apps. So it really creates a great monetization machine.

我只是想補充一點，正如我們所想的那樣，我們在那裡討論了很多關於 WatchFree+ 的內容，但也只是更廣泛的應用程序發布。僅在第四季度，我們就在平台上推出了 17 個額外的應用程序，從 FOX Sports 到 AMC+，甚至最好的 Roblox，我知道我的孩子們經常看。所以這就是帶來更多內容、推廣該內容的重點。它讓那些應用程序所有者有機會在我們的平台上的主屏幕上宣傳自己，所有這些都是為了推動他們自己的參與和觀眾起源，然後我們有機會通過他們獲利。如果 - 大多數情況下，如果不是，所有這些情況都會在這些應用程序中添加可用庫存。所以它真的創造了一個偉大的貨幣化機器。

Got it. And then just one more here. On the quarter, you guys had active accounts with a pretty strong beat relative to Street expectation, shipments also a beat. Is this reflective of the aggressive pricing strategy that you guys have employed over the last few quarters, this very recent success? And if so, just what does it say about your approach as we continue to push forward particularly as we think about our models. Should we assume that you guys are going to remain pretty aggressive in the current macro.

知道了。然後這裡還有一個。在本季度，你們擁有活躍賬戶，相對於華爾街的預期，出貨量也是一個節拍。這是否反映了你們在過去幾個季度採用的激進定價策略，最近的成功？如果是這樣，那麼在我們繼續推進特別是考慮我們的模型時，它對您的方法有何影響。我們是否應該假設你們將在當前的宏觀環境中保持相當積極的態度。

Yes, look, I think there's some dynamics around shipments versus sell-through as well. And as we mentioned on the call sell-through actually grew nicely year-over-year. Sell-through is really what's going to then trigger the growth of an active account, once it gets in the home and it's inactivated television. So there's an ebb and flow that happens with inventory levels in the marketplace. Shipments will then backfill strong sell-through periods and so there is some of that dynamic, it goes on.

是的，看，我認為出貨量與銷售量之間也存在一些動態。正如我們在電話會議上提到的那樣，銷售率實際上同比增長很好。銷售率真的會觸發活躍賬戶的增長，一旦它進入家庭並且它是停用的電視。因此，市場上的庫存水平會出現潮起潮落。然後出貨量將回填強勁的銷售期，因此存在一些動態，它還在繼續。

But overall, in normalized times, we think that those will be much more similar to each other, and so that kind of up and down we've seen over the last, frankly, couple of years. It's been a little bit of noise because of the environment we've been in. To your question, yes, you should assume that we will continue to be aggressive. Consumers have responded very well to our pricing strategy that we've rolled out. Even this last year, we will look to do more of that.

但總的來說，在正常化時期，我們認為它們之間會更加相似，因此坦率地說，我們在過去幾年中看到了這種起伏。由於我們所處的環境，它有點噪音。對於你的問題，是的，你應該假設我們將繼續積極進取。消費者對我們推出的定價策略反應非常好。即使是去年，我們也會尋求做更多這樣的事情。

We don't need to do it across the entire fleet per se. We can be more surgical than that and be a little bit more strategic about what units we want to be aggressive on and where we think we have an opportunity to differentiate ourselves versus some of our peers and our peers respective relative pricing. We also understand engagement levels, we understand usage trends around different screen sizes. So all of that comes into play as we think about what the right strategy is. But it's really about moving more units into homes and driving the business.

我們本身不需要在整個艦隊中進行。我們可以比這更具手術性，並且對我們想要積極進取的單位以及我們認為我們有機會在哪些方面與我們的一些同行和我們的同行各自的相對定價區分開來更具戰略性。我們還了解參與度，我們了解不同屏幕尺寸的使用趨勢。因此，當我們思考什麼是正確的策略時，所有這些都會發揮作用。但這實際上是關於將更多單元搬進家庭並推動業務發展。

Our next question comes from Vasily Karasyov of Cannonball Research.

我們的下一個問題來自 Cannonball Research 的 Vasily Karasyov。

My question is for Michael. Michael about M&A, so not only for you, but also for other platforms and peers of yours, they are growth decelerated significantly, and it would seem that the right inference there would be the big monetization games have been picked away in the previous couple of years. And I was wondering what your view is, a, what could drive reacceleration of that revenue, because the real estate is obviously very valuable, right, there are -- the apps need to promote the -- promote themselves and so on.

我的問題是給邁克爾的。邁克爾關於併購，所以不僅對你，而且對你的其他平台和同行來說，它們的增長都在顯著減速，而且似乎正確的推論是，大型貨幣化遊戲在前幾年已經被淘汰年。而且我想知道你的觀點是什麼，a，什麼可以推動收入的重新加速，因為房地產顯然非常有價值，對，有 - 應用程序需要推廣 - 提升自己等等。

But at the same time we hear from the companies that on the apps that they are rationalizing their costs and so on. So I wonder a, what kind of conversations you're having with M&A advertisers about that? And what kind of potential pricing models or any kind of changes that you think could lead to reacceleration in that revenue stream growth.

但與此同時，我們從這些公司那裡聽到，在應用程序上，他們正在合理化成本等等。所以我想知道，您與併購廣告商就此進行了什麼樣的對話？您認為什麼樣的潛在定價模型或任何類型的變化可能會導致收入流增長重新加速。

Yes. Look, I think, just to clarify from an M&A perspective in Q4, we actually did grow quarter-over-quarter -- year-over-year and quarter-over-quarter in the business. It just wasn't growing as fast as it had historically been. So we still have very strong relationships and we see lots of opportunities for us to continue to build on those right, continue to offer them products beyond the home screen so continue to invest in growing the relationship on the video side as well as through our Household Connect offering. So, we'll continue to build and strengthen our partnerships there. But with that softness, again, as I mentioned, we're expanding from a home screen standpoint. We're expanding into other categories that I think will help offset any weakness that M&A could bring this next year.

是的。我認為，從第四季度的併購角度來看，我們實際上確實實現了季度環比增長——業務同比增長和環比增長。它只是沒有像歷史上那樣快速增長。所以我們仍然有非常牢固的關係，我們看到很多機會讓我們繼續建立這些權利，繼續為他們提供主屏幕以外的產品，因此繼續投資於在視頻方面以及通過我們的家庭發展關係連接產品。因此，我們將繼續在那裡建立和加強我們的伙伴關係。但是，正如我提到的那樣，我們再次從主屏幕的角度擴展了這種柔軟性。我們正在擴展到其他類別，我認為這將有助於抵消明年併購可能帶來的任何弱點。

So we're looking at, continued growth in sponsorships. So as I mentioned we're continuing to build on that bringing advertisers from other categories, whether it'd be CPG Insurance, QSR, et cetera on to the home screen, continuing to enhance our relationships with the studios as box office premiers continue to become more important and expanding into new categories that also factor into our televisions. So again, continuing to look at solutions that invest will bring gaming partners on to the platform.

因此，我們正在關注贊助的持續增長。因此，正如我提到的那樣，我們將繼續以此為基礎，將其他類別的廣告商（無論是 CPG Insurance、QSR 等）帶到主屏幕上，繼續加強我們與電影公司的關係，因為票房首映繼續變得更加重要並擴展到新的類別，這些類別也影響到我們的電視。因此，再次關注投資解決方案將使遊戲合作夥伴加入該平台。

That said, we're also looking to get more innovative with them around ad products. So specific to media and entertainment, we have leveraged our Jump View product, which we've spoken about in the past, which enables advertisers or content partners to jump directly from a linear TV environment directly into their app, those new ad units help us expand our deal sizes. We're also looking at new pricing models and working with them on performance pricing models that will help us I think continue kind of accelerate growth -- that could help us continue to accelerate growth and potentially bring even new app partners that we have onto the platform. So, while there is softness in this space, I will say, I believe we're still doing a good job with M&A and lots more opportunities on the home screen.

也就是說，我們也希望在廣告產品方面與他們一起獲得更多創新。特定於媒體和娛樂，我們利用了我們過去談到的 Jump View 產品，它使廣告商或內容合作夥伴能夠直接從線性電視環境直接跳轉到他們的應用程序，這些新的廣告單元幫助我們擴大我們的交易規模。我們也在研究新的定價模型，並與他們合作制定績效定價模型，我認為這將有助於我們繼續加速增長——這可能有助於我們繼續加速增長，甚至有可能將我們擁有的新應用合作夥伴帶入平台。因此，儘管這個領域有些疲軟，但我會說，我相信我們在併購方面仍然做得很好，並且在主屏幕上有更多機會。

Our final question for today comes Scott Searle from ROTH.

我們今天的最後一個問題來自 ROTH 的 Scott Searle。

Just to piggyback on a couple of the earlier comments, VIZIO hours I think were up overall 13% year-over-year, SmartCast hours were up 23%, 24%, and ARPU growth is up north of 30% and that's been coming down. I'm wondering if you could talk a little bit in terms of how we should think about SmartCast, ARPU growth going forward, given that you've got 20% type growth in SmartCast hours. How much incremental monetization can you see from engagement home screen and otherwise? How we should be thinking about that in '23 and beyond? And then I have a follow-up.

順便提一下之前的幾條評論，我認為 VIZIO 小時數同比增長了 13%，SmartCast 小時數增長了 23%、24%，ARPU 增長超過 30%，而且一直在下降.我想知道你是否可以談談我們應該如何考慮 SmartCast，ARPU 的增長，因為你的 SmartCast 小時數增長了 20%。您可以從參與主屏幕和其他方面看到多少增量貨幣化？我們應該如何在 23 世紀及以後考慮這一點？然後我有一個後續行動。

Yes. So there's significant headroom to continue to grow ARPU not only from a macro when you look at some of the competitors out in the marketplace and where their monetization is versus where we are, we've made tremendous strides, but a lot of room to go there. It shows that the CTV marketplace supports that type of monetization of a user base. But for us specifically, we're still in the learning curve phase of bringing content on to the platform, driving consumers into content particularly around our WatchFree, just this last year.

是的。因此，當您查看市場上的一些競爭對手以及他們的貨幣化與我們所處的位置時，不僅從宏觀上繼續增加 ARPU 的空間很大，我們已經取得了巨大的進步，但還有很大的發展空間那裡。它表明 CTV 市場支持這種類型的用戶群貨幣化。但對我們來說，具體而言，我們仍處於將內容引入平台的學習曲線階段，推動消費者進入內容，尤其是我們 WatchFree 的內容，就在去年。

Last fall, we upgraded our kind of user interface, the EPG around WatchFree place to make -- WatchFree+ to make it more user friendly, quicker, more agile and that will drive -- reduces friction points, right. So better experience, people spend incrementally more time there. So as we think about the experience, the navigation, functionality, the content that's in it continuing to add more and more channels and then use the viewership data to then drive awareness and promote that content on our home screen, it has the potential to increase number of hours spent in ad supported content where we're going to monetize the best and most effectively.

去年秋天，我們升級了我們的用戶界面，圍繞 WatchFree 的 EPG 地方製作 - WatchFree+ 使其更用戶友好，更快，更敏捷，這將推動 - 減少摩擦點，對吧。更好的體驗，人們在那里花費的時間越來越多。因此，當我們考慮體驗、導航、功能和內容時，它會繼續添加越來越多的頻道，然後使用收視率數據來提高知名度並在我們的主屏幕上推廣該內容，它有可能增加在廣告支持的內容上花費的小時數，我們將在這些內容中以最好和最有效的方式獲利。

And so that's the headroom that we have there, we think we have a lot of room to keep pushing that and we're focused on it across the board.

這就是我們在那裡的淨空，我們認為我們有很大的空間來繼續推動它，我們正在全面關注它。

Okay. And if I could just follow-up, I'm not sure if I heard on the call. Any updates on e-wallet. I was wondering if you could give us your thoughts there in terms of timeline monetization opportunity.

好的。如果我可以跟進，我不確定我是否聽到了電話。電子錢包的任何更新。我想知道您是否可以就時間線貨幣化機會向我們提供您的想法。

Yes, that's kind of became rebranded VIZIO accounts, which is sort of our payment platform on the system. We've launched that, I guess, awhile back now maybe eight months or so, six months or so ago. It's really -- it's growing, people starting to become aware of it. We're promoting it on device, so that people can understand that. What's also important about having that capability is it's allowed us to bring additional partners on the platform that we didn't previously have because they want us to handle the billing, the financial transaction component.

是的，這有點像重新命名的 VIZIO 帳戶，這是我們系統上的支付平台。我想，我們已經推出了它，現在可能是八個月左右，六個月左右之前。它真的——它在成長，人們開始意識到它。我們正在設備上推廣它，以便人們能夠理解這一點。擁有這種能力也很重要的是，它允許我們在我們以前沒有的平台上帶來更多的合作夥伴，因為他們希望我們處理計費，金融交易組件。

One example of that would be Starz, premium cable network out there in the marketplace on some of our competitors' platforms, but we hadn't launch with them yet, because they wanted us to have the billing capability. That's great -- having that foundational opportunity is going to be important to bring additional partners on the platform.

其中一個例子是 Starz，這是我們競爭對手平台上市場上的優質有線電視網絡，但我們還沒有與他們一起推出，因為他們希望我們擁有計費功能。這太棒了——擁有這個基礎機會對於在平台上吸引更多合作夥伴非常重要。

And then as we think about linking that to other user engagement, other features and capabilities, it becomes sort of the cornerstone of our relationship and that direct relationship with our consumers. So it's going to continue to grow, I think we're excited about where it is, I'm glad that it's functioning well, we got to help promote it drive more awareness and it just starts to feed on itself from there.

然後當我們考慮將其與其他用戶參與度、其他特性和功能聯繫起來時，它成為我們關係以及與消費者直接關係的基石。所以它會繼續增長，我想我們對它的位置感到興奮，我很高興它運作良好，我們必須幫助促進它提高意識，它才開始從那裡養活自己。

Thanks, Scott, and thanks everyone for joining. This concludes today's call. Have a great evening.

謝謝斯科特，感謝大家的加入。今天的電話會議到此結束。祝你有個愉快的夜晚。

Thank you all for joining today's call. You may now disconnect your lines.

感謝大家參加今天的電話會議。您現在可以斷開線路。