“We have transformed from a hardware company to an integrated hardware and software entertainment company. By owning the hardware and distribution of entertainment as well as the data that flows through it allows us to really focus on the consumer experience the second VIZIO products are turned on.,” observes Katherine Pond, Group Vice President, Platform Content and Partnerships at VIZIO. “I think the genesis of WatchFree+ was really a result of us looking at what consumers wanted, and then figuring out a way that we could fill that need. WatchFree+ also gives us the opportunity to be able to serve ad supported entertainment that will meet the needs of our content, brand and agency advertiser partners.”

The bigger news was that its smart TV Platform+ revenue was up 69% to $110.8 million -- a business that now has a 27% share of total company revenue. Next quarter it expects Platform+ revenue to be between $120 million and $125 million dollars.

Advertising revenue, part of its Platform+ business -- grew 71% to $81 million. Advertising clients rose 74% versus a year ago, adding more than 200 new advertisers.

For Platform+ non-advertising revenue -- mostly from its data licensing -- grew 65% to $30 million. Vizio's Inscape data unit has license deals with iSpot, Comscore, VideoAmp, 605, TVsquared, and Nielsen.

Vizio Holding Corp (VZIO) stock is trading at $12.15, an increase of $1.71, or 16.48%, on high volume. Vizio Holding Corp Cl A gets a Sentiment Score of Bullish from InvestorsObserver and receives an average analyst recommendation of Strong Buy with a price target of $16.25.

VIZIO Holdings (VZIO) recently reported earnings for its second quarter of Fiscal Year 2022. Adjusted earnings per share came in at $0.01, which beat analysts’ consensus estimate of -$0.01. As a result, shares were up over 15% as of this writing on August 11. In the past eight quarters, VZIO has beat estimates four times.

In addition, sales increased 2% year-over-year, with revenue hitting $408.9 million compared to $401.1 million. The increase in revenue can be attributed to the strong growth of VIZIO’s Platform business, which grew 69% compared to last year.

“Our data is becoming the cornerstone of the CTV measurement market through some of our licensing partners,” Townsend said, pointing to iSpot, Comscore, VideoAmp, 605, TVSquared and Nielsen. “[They] all rely on our data to fuel their ad currency products.”

Vizio (NYSE:VZIO) stock gained 11% premarket on Thursday after the firm posted strong Q2 results driven by higher revenue from its advertising platform and issued upbeat Q3 outlook.

VZIO reported Q2 EPS of $0.01 vs. -$0.08 in Q2 2021.

SmartCast hours increased 22% to 4.3 billion hours from 3.5 billion hours last year, with the average revenue per user up 54% to $25.87 from $16.79.

“Vizio has always been focused on great design, great user experiences, but just as importantly, a culture of discipline and efficiency. I am very proud of our strong and seasoned management team that has endured many business cycles and proven to be resilient.” said

“Our second quarter results show the success of the dual revenue model we’ve built.,” CEO William Wang said in a statement.

Connected TV engagement (5:15)
Count winner: Roku
Growth Winner: Vizio

Once again, Roku and Vizio define engagement differently. Roku counts the total hours spent streaming on Roku-powered devices. Vizio reports the aggregate time spent in the SmartCast interface and streaming time initiated from apps within the interface. Since both measures include total streaming time initiated from the TV OS, comparing the two is worthwhile.

Still, Vizio got enough of its SmartCast-powered TV sets in front of new customers to help grow the number of households using its streaming platform. On Wednesday, executives said 16.1 million Vizio TV users are actively engaged with its SmartCast platform, up from 15.6 million the previous quarter and an increase of 15% compared to last year.

Like other companies, Vizio sells advertisement space on the home screen of its SmartCast service and operates its own free, ad-supported streaming television service called Watch Free Plus. Both afford Vizio opportunities to generate revenue from its customers once their smart TV sets are in a home. Vizio said its Platform Plus business, which includes SmartCast and Watch Free Plus, earned $110.8 million in revenue in the three months ending June 30, an increase of 69% compared to last year.

VIZIO Holding Corp. (VZIO) reported Q2 EPS of $0.01, $0.02 better than the analyst estimate of ($0.01). Revenue for the quarter came in at $408.9 million versus the consensus estimate of $419.52 million.

Vizio press release (NYSE:VZIO): Q2 GAAP EPS of $0.01(vs. -$0.08 Y/Y) beats by $0.03.

Revenue of $408.9M (+1.9% Y/Y) beats by $1.73M.
For Q3, the following guidance was provided - Platform+ Net Revenue: $120M - $125M, Platform+ Gross Profit: $75M - $78M, Adjusted EBITDA: $8M - $13M.

Vizio’s platform Plus revenue jumped 69% to $110.8 million and gross profit rose 47% to $69.9 million.. SmartCast active accounts were up 15% to 16.1 million and SmartCast hours spent watching increased 22% to 4.3 billion.

Average revenue per user increased 54% to $25.87.
For the third quarter, Vizio said it expects Platform Plus net revenue to be in the $120 million to $125 million range and Platform Plus gross profit to be between $75 million and $78 million.

Access to on demand shows, original series and movies including Spider-Man: No Way Home and P-Valley with the STARZ App, now available on VIZIO Smart TVs

Connected entertainment specialist VIZIO has confirmed that the STARZ app is now available on VIZIO Smart TVs.

Millions of VIZIO users across America can now access STARZ’s premium hit original series and library of on-demand movies. Highlights include STARZ original series from the Power Universe, Outlander and P-Valley, as well as titles such as Spider-Man: No Way Home, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, Thor: The Dark World and many others.

“Okay. So that sets up the B part of my question better, which is we held a measurement conference, as you guys know. And iSpot.tv came out and said they're doing $100 million in verification for CTV measurement. So my question is, are you guys getting outflanked in the connected television business by a private guy who's got exclusives on LG's CTV data, plus he's got VIZIO data? So can you talk about your competitive position going forward in CTV, please?”

I’m really excited about all of the talk of new currencies for TV as it merges with CTV and the digital ad ecosystem. It's great that we’re now seeing companies like iSpotTV, VIZIO and Samsung bring massive directly measured panels to a market that previously only had Nielsen’s highly curated but relatively small panel.

This month, we saw the VIZIO Holding Corp. (NYSE:VZIO) up an impressive 52%. But that isn't much consolation to those who have suffered through the declines of the last year. Specifically, the stock price slipped by 51% in that time. So the bounce should be viewed in that context. Arguably, the fall was overdone.

If you don't mind filling your room with boxes, the M-Elevate does offer a compelling alternative to the similarly priced Sonos Arc, and it sounds better with movies, too.

Thanks to our report sponsors Amagi, LG Ads Solutions, Magnite, Pluto TV and VIZIO, we are able to offer this report to you for free.