IAB Launches Task Forces to Tackle Data Ownership and Contracts for Interactive Advertising Sales

Ad Operations OnlineTakes On Two of Interactive Industry’s Biggest Issues

ORLANDO, Fla. – The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) announced that it has launched task forces comprised of industry leaders to address two of the biggest issues facing the interactive advertising industry—data ownership and media contracts between buyers and sellers of interactive advertising. These task forces represent a cross section of interactive industry stakeholders from web publishers, portals, search engines and networks and exchanges. Their objective is to find answers to the issues of data ownership and to create a model contract that includes commonly used terms and conditions (Ts&Cs) that are mutually beneficial solutions for publishers, agencies and marketers, thereby improving relationships between the three groups, fostering business growth and facilitating industry partnerships. The announcement was made at the IAB’s Annual Leadership Meeting, Ecosystem 2.0: Brands Battle Back, in Orlando, Florida.

“Our industry is absolutely committed to marshalling interactive media leadership to move forward on these important fronts,” said Randall Rothenberg, President & CEO of the IAB. “We recognize that our members have truly revolutionized marketing with their products and services, and they are the ones who will be most adept at driving the change needed for resolution.”



The Interactive Ts&Cs Task Force’s discussions with the 4A’s are slated to begin in March. The following IAB member companies will serve on this task force:
Cars.com
CBS Interactive
CNN.com
Disney Interactive Media Group
Facebook
Forbes.com
Fox Interactive Media
Google
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia
Microsoft Advertising
NBC Universal
New York Times
Platform-A
Time Inc
Valueclick Media
Yahoo!, Inc

The IAB has long taken a leadership role in improving supply chain operations in an effort to reduce the complexities that marketers and agencies face when buying interactive advertising. One of the steps the IAB has taken was the formation with the 4A’s of the Interactive Reinvention Task Force in 2008, a collaborative publisher-agency effort that also announced today a set of ground-breaking agreements on voluntary business process standards which, if adopted by agencies and publishers, will significantly reduce cost and complexity in the planning and buying of interactive advertising. In addition, the newly created Networks and Exchanges Committee has taken on an initiative to define and map out the types of data that can be collected and developed by ad networks. The IAB also announced today the launch of the Data Task Force that will tackle the challenges associated with data ownership.

About the IAB:

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) is comprised of more than 400 leading media and technology companies who are responsible for selling 86% of online advertising in the United States. On behalf of its members, the IAB is dedicated to the growth of the interactive advertising marketplace, of interactive’s share of total marketing spend, and of its members’ share of total marketing spend. The IAB educates marketers, agencies, media companies and the wider business community about the value of interactive advertising. Working with its member companies, the IAB evaluates and recommends standards and practices and fields critical research on interactive advertising. Founded in 1996, the IAB is headquartered in New York City with a Public Policy office in Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit www.iab.net.