Evan Shapiro’s recent takedown of the TV industry’s acronym addiction is nothing short of a public intervention for a sector that has lost itself in a linguistic labyrinth. In his view, it’s time to stop pretending viewers can—or want to—decode the alphabet soup of terms like FAST, SVOD, AVOD, and TVOD. The solution, he argues, is a radical but straightforward approach: just call it Paid Streaming or Free Streaming and be done with it.
The problem isn’t just confusion; it’s a veritable obstacle to viewer engagement and ad revenue. Alan Wolk, the coiner of “FAST,” explained that terms like AVOD are so inconsistently used, they’re practically meaningless. Instead of treating audiences like acronym aficionados, he suggested simplifying: think of free services as FAST and paid ones as SVOD, period. Shapiro took it further, declaring that we all know what “free” really means in TV—yes, there are ads, and yes, that’s how it will stay.
But this issue runs deeper than terminology—it’s impacting ad spend and audience loyalty. Industry leaders like Field Garthwaite of IRIS.TV and Adam Helfgott of MadHive point out that inconsistent data standards are hindering transparency and complicating programmatic ad buying. With only around 12.5% of ad requests containing usable data for content transparency, buyers have to roll the dice on brand safety and contextual relevance. Without clear data or standardized terms, advertisers are left in a maze, trying to target audiences effectively without accidentally landing in a content mismatch or irrelevant context.
Data fragmentation isn’t just a tech headache; it’s hurting consumer experiences, particularly in the FAST ecosystem, which has grown astronomically but suffers from a Wild West mentality where platforms launch endless channels but struggle with quality control. FAST channels have become dumping grounds for low-budget content, leaving users wading through endless, poorly-curated options. Shapiro’s criticism is that instead of addressing viewers’ actual needs—reliable quality and straightforward access—the industry piles on new acronyms and concepts that don’t make it easier to watch but harder.
The stakes are high. Amagi’s latest data suggests that FAST growth is skyrocketing, yet it’s also hampered by poor discoverability and inconsistency. Shapiro’s vision? A seamless, user-first experience that doesn’t make viewers feel like they need a decoder ring to watch TV. According to him, “the Super Bowl will just play” on the TV in the future, without needing to know what streaming service is involved. That’s the kind of simplicity he’s after—a far cry from today’s maze of technical jargon and siloed apps.
If the industry heeds Shapiro’s rallying cry, the reward could be substantial. Imagine a landscape where ad placements are relevant and contextual, user data moves freely across platforms, and viewers can find what they want without fighting through a maze of platforms. But if TV execs insist on preserving their acronym-heavy language, Shapiro won’t be holding his breath. After all, he’s been down this road before, calling out the sector’s jargon overload as the enemy of transparency and engagement.
In essence, Shapiro’s calling on the industry to evolve—not by adding more layers of complexity but by stripping them away. And in his words, it’s about time we knew what the “F” in FAST really stands for.
