Comcast's Peacock faces new tests from advertisers, viewers

Hi and welcome to this weekly edition of Insider Advertising, where we track the big stories in media and advertising. I'm Lucia Moses, deputy editor here.

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First, senior reporter Lauren Johnson is hosting a webinar about how advertisers can navigate the death of third-party cookies on April 22 with execs from The Trade Desk, Mars, The Washington Post, and R/GA. Sign up here.

What we're following this week:

Peacock's big test

Recess takes on PepsiCo

Playboy's NFT

Peacock's big test

Claire Atkinson took the temperature on Comcast's streaming venture Peacock, which is facing more competition for viewers and advertisers as it enters year two.

Peacock is key to NBCUniversal's effort to keep TV dollars as viewers shift online - and to Comcast's plan to grow broadband customers by offering them a freebie.

From Claire's story:

Read the rest here: Comcast's Peacock is facing a tough test as competition heats up and advertisers seek more viewer data

Recess takes on PepsiCo

Recess got its start making CBD beverages meant to help its buyers relax. Now it's betting on another calming ingredient, with magnesium-based beverages, Alex Bitter reports.

It's a way for Recess to grow without waiting for the federal government to rule on CBD - and capitalize on the success of CPG giants like PepsiCo and Danone have had with similar products.

CBD lacks regulation at the federal level, which effectively bans CBD brands from key national retailers.

But while magnesium is recognized as safe, the science connecting it with reducing anxiety is less solid.

Read the rest here: Recess scored a hit with its millennial pastel-hued CBD seltzer. Now its CEO is challenging PepsiCo with a move into magnesium-infused 'relaxation beverages.'

Playboy's NFT

Playboy is joining the growing list of media organizations launching non-fungible tokens, in this case to showcase its art and photography archive and to release original works from artists, Kari McMahon reports.

If that doesn't jibe with your image of Playboy, consider Playboy's roots. "In the first issue of Playboy magazine, there's this line, 'Picasso, jazz, Nietzsche, and sex, those are the four ideal conversation topics for any sophisticated person'," said Rachel Webber, Playboy's chief brand officer and president of corporate strategy. "Right in the core of Playboy's DNA is appreciation for art and for great artists."

Other things you might not know about the more woke Playboy today: It's no longer associated with the Hefners. The magazine said in 2019 it would predominantly hire women photographers to shoot Playmates and that it would have intimacy coordinators on set.

Read the rest here: Playboy is the latest company to hop on the NFT trend. The company's chief brand officer explains why the digital asset revolution is 'an enormous business opportunity'.

Other stories we're reading:

• Amazon surpasses 10% of US digital ad market share (WSJ)
• Roku plans to debut Roku Recommends, brand-sponsored videos to promote programming across its connected TV platform (Digiday)
• A ketchup shortage in the US is causing prices to spike - and it could get harder to find ketchup packets at restaurants (Insider)
• Snap looked at ways of circumventing Apple's new privacy rules (FT)
• We got an exclusive look at the pitch deck messaging startup Sendbird used to raise $100 million and become a unicorn (Insider)

Thanks for reading, and see you next week. And remember you can sign up for this newsletter here.

- Lucia