TransUnion is partnering with Blockgraph, builder of pipes for addressable television, so that advertisers can use its identity data to target, reach and measure TV households across channels.
Through the partnership, announced on Thursday, advertisers and media companies can access data through Tru Optik, the data marketplace and DMP TransUnion acquired in October; use the data modeling services on offer from TransUnion to build custom audiences; onboard first-party data; and activate audiences across the Blockgraph network, which includes Comcast, Charter and ViacomCBS.
The duo will also work together to develop identity-focused products that help TV marketers resolve first-party data against households or individuals.
Blockgraph was first launched in 2017 and incubated as part of Comcast’s FreeWheel. Charter and ViacomCBS signed on as joint venture partners in Blockgraph the following year.
It’s a work in progress, but the purpose of the venture is to help brands and broadcasters apply identity within the convergent TV ecosystem.
The main value in bringing TransUnion products and services into the Blockgraph network will be to accelerate the application of quality data across all TV platforms, including linear, addressable and streaming video, said John Halley, COO of advertising revenue and advanced marketing solutions at ViacomCBS.
For ViacomCBS specifically, that means being able to connect audience data through a privacy-focused infrastructure “in a manner consistent with our own privacy and security policies,” Halley said.
Privacy is one of the pillars of this partnership, said Matt Spiegel, EVP of the marketing and media vertical at TransUnion.
“We understand how to work in a highly regulated environment, and as we build out our ID graph, we’re focused on consent,” Spiegel said. “But we’re also talking about data security here, both keeping private data secure and also enabling data collaboration between companies that want to work together but don’t want partners to have access to their data.”
So, not unlike a clean room, but for addressable TV.
Data security and data privacy are both “areas of ongoing importance” for ViacomCBS and for the industry at large, Halley said.
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“The industry needs a more secure place to do data collaboration and to facilitate cross-channel TV advertising to allow for continued growth,” Halley said. “Consent and privacy must be at the core of any solution … [and] identity data and distribution must be united through a common infrastructure.”
The TransUnion partnership helps grease those wheels, said Blockgraph CEO Jason Manningham.
“Having this as a native capability allows brands to take part in the full supply chain as modern TV marketers,” Manningham said. “If you want to allow for addressability across linear TV and streaming, to help with more accurate measurement and have a more privacy compliant way to do deterministic reach and frequency across platforms, then you really need a more modern infrastructure.”
