Will.i.am joined a media panel at Cannes to discuss new advertising and media models, emphasising that advertising should be "adding value to communities", not "advertising or marketing". Dismissing Google marketing executive Lorraine Twohill's statement that 87% of people do not skip ads on YouTube, will.i.am argued "they"re not paying attention to it. They"re skipping it in their head" as they are not adding value to people's lives. The singer and entrepreneur argued that real creative success is measured by creating shareable content which penetrates culture, arguing penetration was more important than number of views (which are subject to ad fraud). He also said he would like to see the introduction of an online subscription service for TV channels such as Sky News and Channel 4 News, similar to what exists with Netflix.
Will.i.am joined a media panel at Cannes to discuss new advertising and media models, emphasising that advertising should be "adding value to communities", not "advertising or marketing". Dismissing Google marketing executive Lorraine Twohill's statement that 87% of people do not skip ads on YouTube, will.i.am argued "they"re not paying attention to it. They"re skipping it in their head" as they are not adding value to people's lives. The singer and entrepreneur argued that real creative success is measured by creating shareable content which penetrates culture, arguing penetration was more important than number of views (which are subject to ad fraud). Will.i.am also warned that disruption to the industry was likely to come from the periphery rather than from current players in the market.