THE WEATHER CHANNEL APP EVOLUTION ON MOBILE

FOREWARD

The Brits’ eternal obsession with the weather, coupled with high levels of smartphone penetration, make the UK the perfect environment for effective weather-based mobile marketing.

For the last 30 years, people have been coming to The Weather Channel (TWC) platforms for the vital information that allows them to make plans in all aspects of their lives.

At TWC we recognise that mobile is revolutionary for communicating meaningful weather data. Mobile is personal, portable and pedestrian, and we make it a real-time part of life. As a result, combined with big data sets such as location and weather conditions, mobile can be used to bring powerful contextual relevance to marketing messages.

Mobile has become the connective tissue that joins the digital and physical worlds, giving a new dimension to consumers’ experiences and enabling marketers to achieve new levels of continuous customer touch and interaction.

In the past 12 months, TWC’S apps have been redefined and redesigned with various new functional elements and content, enabling users to achieve a seamless yet engaging mobile experience when checking the weather.

This brochure has been designed to demonstrate the evolution of The Weather Channel’s mobile apps across Android, iPhone, iPad and other tablet devices.

The rich advertising solutions on our mobile apps are all about maximising the potential of mobile and turning the weather into a powerful opportunity for advertisers.

Ross Webster: Managing Director, EMEAThe Weather Channel Global Media, Ltd

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

PG 3Mobile Innovation

PG 5We Are Dominating Mobile

PG 7It Started with the iPhone

PG 8What Our Users Are Saying About Our Apps

PG 9Why The Evolution?

PG 10Changing The Face Of Mobile

PG 11Scrolling Is The New Click

PG 12Notable New Features

PG 17Going Beyond The Forecast

PG 19Notable New Ad Formats

PG 27Smarter Ad Solutions

PG 29Mobile Innovations Applied

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MOBILE INNOVATION

Location data superiorityn

Cutting edge and differentiated consumer experiences

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Integrated marketing solutions to showcase your brand

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WE, LIKE THE WEATHER CHANNEL, FORECAST TRENDS.

In H1 2014, content and native (including in feed) advertising made up one third (£216 million) of digital display advertising overall. Mobile is a huge part of this trend, as two thirds (£143m) of content and native spend is mobile specific.

We at the IAB UK recognise the pivotal role mobile plays in the industry, especially for advertisers. Over the past six years we have run many events covering the evolution of mobile, ensuring that there are continued debates on hot topics such as native, and showcasing case studies that demonstrate the success of mobile advertising. To further help the market understand the scale and impact of mobile advertising, we also undertake the twice yearly IAB/PWC Digital Adspend Study.

In H1 2014 this study revealed that mobile spend soared by 68.4% to reach £707.1 million in for the half year period alone.

The H1 2014 IAB/PWC Adspend Study also found that :

The advertising industry is constantly evolving it looks that in 2015 mobile will be at the centre of it all.

We at the IAB will continue out work to put mobile at the forefront of the advertising industry for media owners, advertisers and agencies.

Alex Kozloff, Head of Mobile IAB

Mobile accounted for 20% of all digital advertising the first half of 2014.

Mobile display was worth £315.7 million in H1 2014, with content and native formats taking the largest share at 45%.

In app advertising continues to be the majority of mobile display with more than half (58%) of standard display adspend in app inventory.

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WE ARE DOMINATING MOBILE GLOBALLY

across TWC apps and mobile websites from users globally

OVER 775 TOUCHPOINTS

Source: Omniture, iOS, Android and WinPhone, Average Monthly Visits from UK IP, Oct ‘13 - Jul ‘14

OVER OVER

150

#1 #2#2

3.3MILLION1

iPHONE GOOGLE PLAYiPAD

MILLION2

MOBILE APP DOWNLOADS

DOWNLOADS ACROSS TWC APPS GLOBALLY

Worldwide Rank in Weather Category Downloads

1. Source: Omniture, Avg Monthly Oct ‘13 - Sep ‘14. 2. Source: Individual App Stores

Worldwide Rank in Weather Category Downloads

Worldwide Rank in Weather Category Downloads

DOWNLOADS ACROSS TWC APPS IN THE UK

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IT STARTED WITH IPHONE

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“The Weather Channel’s New iPhone App is

Gorgeously Vertical”

“New App Design Redefines What It Means to be

a Weather Watcher”

17 Million Upgrades globally in the first 48 hours

On TIME’S 50 Best iPhone apps list

“Best New App” in 152 countries

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WHAT OUR USERS ARE SAYING ABOUT OUR APPS

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iPHONE

iPAD

3rd December 2014, Best Weather App“Always loved this app . By far the best weather app and never lets me down” Krimathy

18th August 2014, Know your Weather“Great app, use it on iOS and android. Like app as it tells down to 15 minutes the weather Also sunrise and sunset times is helpful. It also automatically updates your location as you move. Some days I travel alot of distance and its good to know the current weather where I am as my job is weather dependent.” Whteagle

25th November 2014, Really Handy“This great little app is just what I needed…” His400

23rd November 2014, Outlook is fair“TWC is easy to configure and pretty accurate- more than good enough to keep this motorcyclist dry” Adam3of7

2nd December 2014, Weather App“An excellent weather app- informed and attractive” Michael Davidson

15th November 2014, Most accurate weather app“It’s never been wrong yet after 5 months!” thebaron1000

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WHY THE EVOLUTION?

Make our users lives easier, better, and safern

Introduce features that go beyond the forecastn

Expand our industry-leading ad solutionsn

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Notable New Featuresn

Notable New Ad Formats n

with Smarter Ad Solutions n

CHANGING THE FACE OF MOBILE

SCROLLING IS THE NEW CLICK

New design takes advantage of evolving behaviour on mobile devices

Seamlessly integrating your brand into the user experience

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NEW DESIGN

NEW DESIGN

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NEW WEATHER CHECK INNOTABLE NEW FEATURES

One-touch reporting of personal weather observations

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Makes weather personal and participatory

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Ultimately improves our forecast accuracy

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Weather that matters MOST - upon first glance in the appn

Detailed hourly weather forecastn

Relevant weather at your fingertipsn

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ENHANCED HOURLY & 10 DAY FORECASTNOTABLE NEW FEATURES

The most important feature to monitor precipitationn

Beyond rainfall, map shows cloudcover, UV index and moren

Improved map animations are more accurate than evern

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ENHANCED LOCAL RAINFALL & MAPS

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NOTABLE NEW FEATURES

Users come for the forecast but stay for the story

Alerts displayed on current conditions screen with relevant imagery

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Leveraging the success of weather.co.uk content

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Covering weather, nature, science, travel and more

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Severe targeting allows marketers to reach users when it matters most and more

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NEW COMPELLING CONTENT

ENHANCED SEVERE COVERAGE

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ENHANCED VIDEO

Video tells the weather story now more than ever before

We will be producing and creating our own video content

Slide show imagery also available

Feature based weather video content to be displayed within our apps

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NEW POLLEN INDEX

NEW SKI CONDITIONS

GOING BEYOND THE FORECAST

One touch selection for tree, grass, or weed allergies

Integrated module that featuresseasonal activity

Detail on slope conditions, snowfall, snowboard trails, how many lifts are open and snow conditions

Ski conditions will only be present if theres a ski condition location near the searched location (WITHIN 200 MILES)

Animated condition level shows pollen activity in your area

Pollen on TWC mobile has quickly become the on-the-go resource for allergy sufferers

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COMING SOON AIRPORT CONDITIONS

COMING SOON COLD & FLU

Users rely on us when on the go Interactive module shows regional flu activity

Whether it’s sporadic or widespread, we keep our users informed and healthy

We keep them informed and help them prepare for changes in their travel

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* Airport conditions Available in June 2015 * Cold and Flu currently available in US and coming soon to UK

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IT’S ALL ABOUT NATIVENOTABLE NEW AD FORMATS

BRANDED BACKGROUNDS NATIVE ELEMENTS

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VERTICAL SPONSORSHIPS

65%lift in

BRAND ASSOCIATION

52%lift in

BRAND AWARENESS

38%lift in

BRAND FAVOURABILITY

24%lift in

PURCHASE INTENT

67%lift in

BRAND RECALL

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BRAND INTEGRATIONNOTABLE NEW AD FORMATS

High impact, relevant storytellingn

Industry-leading, award winning custom creativen

Seamless placement in our brand environmentn

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INTRODUCINGNATIVE ELEMENTS

NOTABLE NEW AD FORMATS

Creative story telling without disruption

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Seamlessly integrate your brand into the path of consumers

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Scale your Facebook and Twitter creative, single set of assets delivers seamlessly across platforms

Video

4 available formats

Photo

Call to Action

Mobile App Driver

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300x250COMES TO PHONES

VERTICALSPONSORSHIPS

The web standard comes to mobile Align your brand with contextually relevant weather tools and content

Native elements provide fully integrated ad solutions

Starting with Cold & Flu, Pollen Index, Ski Conditions and Airport Conditions

Streamlined creative unifies your message across multiple screens and makes implementation easy

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SCROLL TAKEOVERNOTABLE NEW AD FORMATS

Full ownership of the entire scroll for one day

Tell a story through creative sequencing & key placementwithin the scroll (available on iphone and android only)

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SMARTER AD SOLUTIONS WEATHERFX

COMING SOON AUDIENCEFX

WeatherFX gives our mobile formats the ability to adapt and react to the weather in a fully automated fashion

Extend cross platform, reaching a greater unique audience

Drive sales based on actual consumer behaviour

Reach a specific audience at the right time, at the right location, with the right message

Target mobile consumers in the right mindset

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COMING SOON AUDIENCEFX

COMING SOON LOCATION BASED SUPERIORITY

Weather is inherently local

100% of our mobile inventory comes through with quality location data

Or target them based on their physical location with precise, yet flexible solutions

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CASE STUDY: THOMSON HOLIDAYSMOBILE INNOVATION APPLIED

THOMSON HOLIDAYS PARTNERED WITH THE WEATHER CHANNEL FOR THEIR AUTUMN MARKETING CAMPAIGN

The Weather Channel implementations were part of Thomson’s strategy to raise the profile of the TUI smile logo in the U.K. and drive consumers to Thomson.co.uk.

Utilising our unique ability to trigger highly relevant and impactful creative based on current weather conditions, the campaign took an unusual approach of associating the holiday brand with bad weather.

When app users were suffering rainy, cloudy, snowy or cold weather they were served a bespoke branded background. The background featured Miles and the relevant British weather system which then transformed into an image of an exotic location. Miles, now transported to sunnier climes was left with a beaming smile.

By displaying images of stunning holiday locations to the eight million users of The Weather Channel app during bad weather, consumers were given the perfect cue to plan their summer holiday. When users saw wet, cold and snowy weather forecasts, instead of just reaching for their brolly they would be thinking of booking a summer get-away with Thomson.

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“ The branded background takeover on The Weather Channel app is a great way of showcasing how Thomson Holidays can help transform you back to your best possible self. By seeing Miles experiencing the same bad weather they are, then literally discover his smile before their eyes when he is whisked away to the sun, consumers will see the power a Thomson Holiday has to help them discover their smile.”

Charlotte McDonnellsenior marketing manager

TUI Travel U.K.

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CASE STUDY: PEUGEOTMOBILE INNOVATION APPLIED

THE WEATHER CHANNEL APPOINTED TO CREATE NATIVE ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN FOR PEUGEOT

We were appointed by Peugeot to create a campaign for the car manufacturer’s new 308 model. The campaign used our award winning native product, Branded Backgrounds, on The Weather Channel App for iPad or the first time in the U.K.

The two-month long campaign ran and is still running on our app’s branded backgrounds, and aims to integrate the brand seamlessly into the path of an engaged consumer.

The activity for Peugeot to promote the new 308, which won the prestigious Car of the Year Award was created to deliver an impactful and unique communication .This native ad product created by us is a perfect creative canvas for high impact, relevant storytelling and dynamically matches creative to weather conditions.

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“With the launch of the award-winning new Peugeot 308 this year we sought to reach a broad audience, and in the U.K., given the weather is the most talked about subject, we felt an alliance with The Weather Channel App for iPad was most appropriate. Aimed at the right customer demographic and using innovative creative, we believe that this collaboration will help us to increase awareness of this new car within the Peugeot range.”

Melanie Kent head of media & integration

Peugeot U.K.

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GET IN CONTACT WITH US...

@TWCUK_Ads

ALL SALES CREATIVE QUERIES...

Arti ShahAgency Sales DirectorArti.shah@weather.com

Heath BatemanCreative Services ManagerHeath.bateman@weather.com

Lindsay WilesStrategic DirectorLindsay.wiles@weather.com

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© 2015 The Weather Channel