4As Named Marla Kaplowitz As President; TV Listening Tech Emerges

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New Sheriff

The 4As has named former MEC North American CEO Marla Kaplowitz as its new prez, Ad Age reports. Kaplowitz will replace longtime President and CEO Nancy Hill in June. Kaplowitz inherits ongoing calamities like the ANA’s probe into agency transparency and metrics disputes with digital platforms. Before leading MEC North America, Kaplowitz worked at Publicis’ Mediavest for 12 years, where she managed the communications planning account for Procter & Gamble. More.

The TVs Have Eyes

The New York Times’ Sapna Maheshwari profiles recent initiatives to capture television viewing behaviors. The piece centers on a company called TVision, which uses a Microsoft Kinect-powered setup and TV listening tech to monitor viewing habits – on an opt-in basis – and match those habits back to programming and commercials. Such tracking technologies are emerging as marketers grapple with a shift in video consumption habits – and as connected TVs unlock new tracking capabilities. Earlier this month, Vizio settled an FTC charge for $2.2 million for collecting and selling viewing data. Samsung’s smart TVs have an opt-in option for the collection of passive audio and video data, which it then sells to measurement third parties. More at NYT.

IOU

Agencies are pushing back against the over-long client payment cycles that became de rigueur during the 2008 financial crisis, Digiday reports. Grey recently fired beauty brand Coty for insisting on 120-day billing terms, while digital shop TVGla refused to accept a 90-day payment cycle from Relativity Media. “Anything beyond 60 days is really a problem because agencies cannot pay their people,” said Ann Billock, founder of marketing management consultancy Ark Advisors. “But on the client side, it is more of a financial decision than a marketing decision.” More. In the ad tech space, FastPay extends credit to cover media costs while firms waiting for clients to pay up. [AdExchanger coverage]

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