Senior Vice President & Chief Technology Officer, Tegna
Search every verified Kurt Rao interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. In a September 2023 interview at the NAB Show, Kurt Rao, Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer at Tegna, discussed the company's use of video analytics. He described Tegna as a local broadcaster with 64 television stations producing about 14 hours of content daily, distributed across antenna, digital, cable, and satellite platforms. Rao stated that while linear television remains the core business with the largest audience, the company is increasing its digital focus to understand consumer behavior and content preferences within local communities. Rao emphasized the critical role of data, describing it as "a new currency in media." He noted that the company aims to connect diverse data sources—such as DSP exhaust, website visits, and CTV app usage—to inform decisions on content production and consumer engagement. He identified cultural and people adoption as the biggest challenges in technology rollout, rather than the technology itself. Rao also discussed the need for flexible platforms that can adapt to different broadcasters' internal processes, rather than forcing organizations to change to fit a one-size-fits-all system.
“Techna is a local broadcaster in the US with 64 television stations producing about 14 hours of content a day, including news, weather, and sports, distributed across multiple platforms like antenna, digital, cable, and satellite.”
“Our core business remains linear television, which has the largest audience, but we are also ramping up digital to understand who the digital consumers are and what content they seek, focusing on local communities rather than national or global news.”
“We monetize content through subscription and advertising models, aiming to connect advertisers with consumers effectively, and we focus on understanding and deepening engagement with both known and unknown audiences.”
“Data is absolutely critical and our future; the challenge is to connect diverse data sources like DSP exhaust, website visits, and CTV app usage to make intelligent decisions about content production and consumer understanding.”
NPAW's CMO Till Sudworth recently sat down with Tegna's CTO Kurt Rao at the NAB Show 2023 in Las Vegas to discuss how the ...
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