MediaMath Shuts Down PLYMedia; Ad Blocker Optimism

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MediaMath Shuts Down PLYMedia

MediaMath appears to have cancelled buying privileges for one of its clients, PLYMedia, after former AppNexus CTO Mike Nolet described mobile video fraud he attributed to PLYMedia. The arbitrage player was buying mobile video impressions using MediaMath’s DSP and reselling them on LiveRail and Adap.tv. MediaMath said it would tighten some of its anti-fraud policies, including modifying how many strikes a client can have before it’s out. The mobile video fraud perpetrated by PLYMedia is exactly the kind that would have users running to install ad blockers: It sucked up 7% of a monthly data allowance in a single impression. Read the blog post.

On The Up Side

Writing for Ad Age, Havas SVP of strategy Tom Goodwin looks on the bright side of ad blocking. The current mobile Internet ad experience is broken, says Goodwin, and Apple’s plan to bake ad blockers into its operating system is a chance to rethink mobile strategies. “Ad agencies need to get imaginative, publishers and media owners need to start respecting consumers’ attention spans, and brands need to produce quality messaging and learn to attract and entertain,” he writes. The way forward could be investing in premium mobile ads, embracing native spots and working on new brand content like apps. More.

Automating The Airwaves

WideOrbit debuted a programmatic marketplace for terrestrial radio on Tuesday, dubbed WO Programmatic Radio. Among the early participants are Entravision, Entercom and Radio One, three networks that host hundreds of stations. “We are especially pleased that WO Programmatic Radio allows our station general managers to compare programmatic offers with their other sold business,” said Entravision COO Jeffery Liberman. “This will help us guarantee that our programmatic sales channel is driving new revenue to our stations.” Read the release.

The Social Media Sidecar

It makes a certain sense that ads running simultaneously across TV and social are more impactful than the sum of their parts. Adweek’s Christopher Heine highlights a couple of examples, such as social media ads that are automatically triggered by broadcast commercials in a local market, and tech vendors that specialize in measuring the relationship between TV promos and social media boost. The article also touches on a devious strategy: buying the social media parallel to a competitor’s TV spot in an attempt to co-opt the impact. Read on.

Reach For The Stars

Dubai-based Al Ahi Holding Group snapped up TheAudience on Tuesday, in a play to manage and develop digital stars. TheAudience’s bread and butter is connecting brands and advertisers with stars on social media. Following its sale, the company will act as “the connective tissue” between Al Ahi’s considerable tech, media and entertainment holdings. As influencer marketing and direct access to digital stars grows in importance for marketers, expect more media conglomerates to integrate firms like TheAudience. More via the NYT.