How SNL's 50th anniversary showed future of TV branding - and what it means for marketers

In an interview at SXSW, Jamie Cutburth of NBCUniversal discussed how SNL's 50th-anniversary celebration served as a case study in innovative brand partnerships. With the traditional television model challenged by streaming and ad-skipping, NBCUniversal aims to transform TV viewing into an interactive ecosystem, where brands can seamlessly integrate into content. The special featured collaboration with SNL's writers, creating an authentic blend of entertainment and advertising that resonated with audiences, resulting in significant engagement metrics post-event.

For the first time in SNL history, we partnered with the show's writers to create branded content that blended our advertisers directly into the show's DNA.

The SNL anniversary special embodied this shift, highlighting how brand partnerships must feel native, valuable and entertaining in today's fragmented media landscape.

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