Paramount makes the VMAs shoppable amid broader live commerce push

The news: Paramount Global is deepening its bet on live shopping with an expanded partnership with Shopsense AI.

• The two companies partnered to make the 2024 MTV VMAs shoppable, following a similar pilot that took place during April’s CMAs.
• Viewers were able to use Shopsense’s recently released AI-powered lens to take pictures of their favorite outfits and browse similar options suggested by the company’s algorithm.
• The capability will be extended to other Paramount content “in the coming weeks and months,” John Halley, president of Paramount Advertising, said in a press release.

The rationale: Paramount is one of a number of legacy media players—including NBCU—exploring shoppable TV as an additional revenue source.

• The idea is to capitalize on the fact that viewers are increasingly on their phones while watching TV and drive impulse purchases from audiences looking to mimic the styles of their favorite celebrities or characters.
• Unlike a similar shoppable initiative between Walmart and Roku, which required watchers to pause their shows to make a purchase from their TVs, Paramount’s goal is to offer a “complete lack of friction,” Halley told CNBC, and make the act of browsing (or purchasing) an extension of viewers’ existing behaviors.
• The more seamless the journey, the higher the potential revenues: Paramount not only gets a cut of each sale, but also if a user merely clicks on a product in some instances.

Our take: Consumers are gradually becoming more comfortable with the idea of shopping through their TVs.

• A January 2024 survey by LG Ad Solutions found that roughly 3 in 10 CTV users (29%) made a purchase on their TVs in the previous three months, while 48% of those who have seen a CTV ad with a QR code have scanned it at least once.
• While it’s still early days, shoppable TV may leapfrog livestream commerce in popularity given that it’s an extension of viewers’ existing behaviors.

Go further: Read our Shoppable Media Explainer 2024.