Programmatic 'Tipping Point'; A 'Second Path' To Funding

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Programmatic ‘Tipping Point’

Even the most optimistic acknowledge that TV dollars are beginning to make a more pronounced shift to digital. As the FT’s Emily Steel notes, a wider adoption of programmatic ad sales methods is taking place, impacting the traditional face-to-face negotiations between sellers and buyers. “This year may be the tipping point where programmatic buying, which has been historically online, will make the transition to offline,” said MediaLink CEO Michael Kassan. “The nature is to resist change, but I don’t think they can stop it. Momentum is building. Broadcasters will have no alternative.” Read more.

A ‘Second Path’ To Funding

Given the ubiquity of “rentable” technology (bidders, servers, data- and demand-side platforms, etc), Undertone CEO Eric Franchi says it’s now easier than ever to bootstrap your way to market penetration. “For example a mobile rich media play,” he blogs. “Assuming the distribution channel is in place, a company can skip right to validation via direct sales, channel partnerships or a combination of both.” Surprise, surprise: This is the way Franchi says Undertone did it. Read it.

More CRM Retargeting

eBay-owned display ad retargeter Fetchback is on the warpath with new set of marketing videos. “CRM targeting” is part of the mix, as product manager David Jardine explains how his platform differentiates itself with CRM, “We’ve [developed] an intensive information security process where an advertiser exports a segment of their database and encrypts it before they send it to us. And then we take that encrypted data and match it against online data so that there is no sharing of an email address between any party in the ecosystem.” See the videos now.

The Consultant Cometh

The Economist looks at changes among the big consulting players, including accounting firms (PwC, Deloitte and Ernst & Young) and pure play consultants (McKinsey, BCG and Bain). While the piece doesn’t deal with the digital ad space directly, you can read between the lines here and see a bigger role for these players. From the report: “Clients are increasingly demanding specific expertise, not just raw brainpower. McKinsey and BCG, in particular, are hiring more scientists, doctors and mid-career industry types, and reducing the proportion of new MBAs in their ranks.” And they’re going after proprietary data. Read it.

GM’s Newest Model

General Motor’s latest model isn’t a car; it’s how GM structures its technology systems. CIO Journal’s Steven Rosenbush and Jeff Bennett report that the automaker is modelling its new IT system on Facebook and Google – not Ford or Hyundai. “We believe we can grow faster with stronger IT,” said CIO Randy Mott. “That is why we are making investments in our own data centers and innovation centers.” Read more.

Brands Love Instagram (For Free)

AllFacebook’s Justin Lafferty cites a study that shows how much major brands love Instagram these days. For example, 67% of the Interbrand 100, which include marketers such as Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, and Disney, have a presence on the app, compared with 57% in February. Lafferty notes that more brands are reaching high follower counts too. But will they eventually become paying advertisers? Read the rest. You gotta start somewhere.

Targeting Mobile Content

In its latest attempt to make Google+ attractive to brands, the search giant has unveiled a new recommendations feature for mobile sites. Developers can now add code to their sites that will give users a link to related articles that have been shared or +1’d on Google+. The new feature is designed to provide readers with “the right content from your mobile website, at just the right time,” claims Google on its developers blog. Read the rest. Could the retargeting of mobile display ads somehow be next?

The Big Bad Marketer

Consumers, beware. “You are being spied on,” according to China Daily’s Erik Nilsson in a piece that paints marketers as data-mongers. “Web-tracking companies are logging your keystrokes, page visits – even the routes your mouse takes across pages, including where you hover and for how long. They are documenting, aggregating and selling your information to Big Data,” Nilsson writes. Read more.

You’re Hired!