The coalition strongly believes in the technology-neutral principles of EU legislation to ensure a high level of data protection and fully welcomes initiatives intended to clarify in practice which requirements may apply to new technologies and allow companies to innovate with legal certainty and towards privacy forward practices. 

However, the undersigned associations have grave reservations that the proposed guidelines 2/2023 as currently drafted are likely to produce the opposite effect, as they entail significant risks of discrepancies in their application by organisations and regulators, defeating thereof the purpose to remove ambiguities related to the material scope of Article 5(3) of the ePrivacy Directive.

- Firstly, it is unclear whether the proposed guidelines adequately capture the perspectives of authorities that are effectively entrusted with the power to enforce national ePrivacy rules. This raises questions as to whether the proposed guidelines reflect the views of such authorities and might aggravate legal uncertainty across the Union.

- Secondly, the proposed guidelines prescribe an expanded interpretation of how the ePrivacy Directive applies to existing technologies, in particular of the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP/IP) and ephemeral storage mechanisms such as RAM. This is not only misaligned with the objectives of the ePrivacy Directive to protect users’ private sphere but also contradicts established positions adopted by local regulators - raising the prospect of inconsistent enforcement and economic disparities for organisations across Europe.

- Thirdly, the proposed guidelines eliminate all distinction between operations that involve tracking users’ activities and those which do not, such as the delivery of contextual advertising or the prevention of fraud. By failing to provide guidance on how the two exemptions provided by the ePrivacy Directive might apply to the novel positions taken by the EDPB, a large number of operations that are fundamental to the way Internet works could become subject to consent. This would have the detrimental effects of worsening the so-called consent fatigue phenomenon and acting as a deterrent for companies to favour where possible privacy forward practices.

Recommendations

The undersigned associations recommend the EDPB to revise the proposed guidelines in a way that reflects their competences, tasks and powers, and to align their analysis with both the ePrivacy Directive’s primary objective to protect the private sphere of users as well as the interpretative guidance that has been issued by competent authorities over the last years. 

Additionally, it is essential for any new guidance or recommendations provided by the EDPB on the matter to concomitantly cover which situations may qualify for exemption from the consent requirement under Article 5(3) of the ePrivacy Directive, to take into account real-life technical and business considerations. 

The response to the public consultation can be found here. For more information, please contact Ninon Vagner, Privacy Director, IAB Europe - vagner@iabeurope.eu / Helen Mussard, CMO, IAB Europe - mussard@iabeurope.eu

So, In this blog post, we are showcasing some of IAB Europe’s best bits and all the great work we have accomplished with our wonderful members and partners.  Thank you to you all for your hard work, support, and expertise shared and for helping us to make 2023 such a great success. We couldn’t have done it without you!

Let’s dive in…

Key Stats

In 2023, we ran over 30 events and webinars attracting over 5500 attendees over the year, sharing information and knowledge within the industry. We also worked with industry experts from across our membership to produce 8 guides on key topics, such as Attention and Sustainability.

Most participated Events of 2023 

From our flagship event Interact in Madrid to our Great Debate series and Virtual Programmatic Days, we have covered a wide range of topics through our virtual and in-person events this year. 

Check out some of the most popular events below and watch these on demand. Or head to our Knowledge Hub if you want to watch more of our great events on demand. 

Interact 2023 in Madrid

This year we held our flagship annual event ‘Interact’ in Madrid, Spain, where we unpacked a whole host of topics from the attention economy, CTV, and retail media, through to premium publisher’s advertising models, sustainability, and more. Check out the event highlights and recordings here. 

Two Hybrid Virtual Programmatic Days 

Our Virtual Programmatic Day (VPD) events bring together industry experts and thought leaders to explore the latest trends, drivers, and barriers impacting programmatic trading in Europe. This year the events covered, programmatic omnichannel, the opportunity in Retail Media, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and more. 

• Check out the session recordings and highlights from our H1 event here.
• Check out the session recordings and highlights from our H2  here.

The Great Debate Series

Our Great Debate series of events brings industry experts together to discuss and debate the industry’s hottest topics of the moment. Check out some of our Great Debate event recordings and highlights below:

• The Great Debate: How Can We Advance Sustainability in Digital Advertising? 
• The Great Debate: The European Retail Media Landscape
• The Great Debate: Trust & Transparency

Top Three Industry Research

We love research and with our extensive experience of undertaking industry attitude and benchmarking studies on a range of digital advertising and marketing topics, it’s easy to see why. Below you will find our top three pieces of research from 2023:

• 2022 AdEx Benchmark Report - Want to know what channels, formats and markets shape digital investment? Check out this report
• Attitudes to Programmatic Advertising Report 2023 - What are the barriers and opportunities to programmatic investment? Check out this report which asked 400 industry stakeholders for their views and more.
• The Evolution of Digital Audio Advertising in Europe 2023 Report in Partnership with GroupM Nexus - Bring yourself up to speed on what is shaping and driving audio investment.

Top Trending Guides Authored by Industry Experts

All of our guides are created with the help and expertise of our industry committee members. Check out some of our top trending pieces below:

• Guide to Attention in Digital Marketing
• 101 Guide to Retail Media
• Guide to Improving Sustainable Business Decision-Making

[New for 2023] Sustainability Spotlight 

Our Sustainability Standards Committee was set up in October 2022 and through 2023 has continued with its collaborative efforts to help reduce the carbon emissions produced by the delivery of digital advertising. Here are some of the key outputs the committee and IAB Europe have produced to support this key topic:

• State of Readiness - Sustainability in Digital Advertising Report
• Harmonising Language Use for Sustainability Approaches in Digital Advertising 
• Digital Advertising Sustainability Summit 

[New for 2023] Retail Media Spotlight 

Our Retail Media Committee has been busy working on several initiatives to help educate and advance the Retail Media landscape. Check out some of our Retail Media highlights below:

• This year we curated a network of retailers from across Europe to advance our Retail Media work. The Council has been meeting regularly in Q4 and has been focused on the development of retail media standards.
• Our Chief Economist, Daniel Knapp, has been consistently monitoring the digital advertising market, particularly the developments in Retail Media. Get the latest stats in this infographic here. 

Policy, Advocacy, and Legal Spotlight

Let’s talk policy! This year, we have continued our policy advocacy efforts, demonstrating the value of the industry, and contributing to discussions on relevant EU policy dossiers. 

• One of this year’s main highlights was our summary of the DSA Ads Transparency Approach. Later, IAB Tech Lab published the DSA Transparency technical specification for public comment, an MVP designed to provide the industry with a solution that is readily implementable given the Digital Services Act (DSA) effective date of February 17th, 2024.

• We also hosted our first in-person policy event  IAB Europe’s European Elections: Rights and Risks in the Digital Public Space, where we invited stakeholders from all sides of the debate to participate, including the Commission’s Vice-President Věra Jourová. 

• We also took the opportunity to provide our views on current legislation such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Procedural Regulation and the European Media Freedom Act (EMFA), by disseminating our position papers to the relevant policymakers and discussing our stance and recommendations during meetings with them. 

• Our advocacy work also included our participation in the Commission's evaluation on consumer law, and our involvement in the Commission’s initiative, Cookie Pledge, a voluntary initiative that aims at countering cookie fatigue in consumers. 

• Finally, we released our monthly newsletter Policy Matters, to provide readers with bitesize information on all things policy, relevant to the digital advertising industry. We share brief analyses of current legislation and news that shape our work and the digital advertising landscape as a whole. Sign up at the bottom of this page 

2024 - What’s to Come?

As we look forward to 2024, you can expect a lot more great content, insights, events, and exciting news from us. 

From more Retail Media and Sustainability to the DSA, AI, programmatic advancements, and more we can’t wait to get stuck in with all of our members as we explore and advance in our industry’s hottest topics next year. 

We will also be hosting our annual Interact conference in a brand new location, so be sure to keep your eyes peeled for more details coming soon.

So that rounds up 2023! A huge thank you to all of our members for getting involved in our initiatives this year and for helping to keep our  content as engaging and thought-provoking as ever 

If you are interested in joining IAB Europe or are already a member and want to get more information and be involved in our committees or task forces, outputs, or content, please get in touch with the team at communication@iabeurope.eu. 

We wish you all a wonderful festive period and a relaxing break, and look forward to working together and collaborating in the new year to drive the industry forward in 2024 and beyond.

IAB Europe this week signed an industry joint letter addressed to the Members of the Committee of Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs of the European Parliament (LIBE) on the Data Act proposal and its interplay with the GDPR. The letter initiated by FEDMA was co-signed by IAB Europe, Alliance Digitale (IAB France), IAB Poland, IAB Spain and IAB Sweden and other associations representing companies from various sectors of the business community. 

As the LIBE Committee moves forward to finalise its opinion on the proposed Data Act, some provisions in the European Commission’s proposal and some amendments in the LIBE Committee’s draft opinion could have the unintended consequences of overriding the GDPR risk-based approach that would ultimately undermine the adduce goal of the Data Act of facilitating innovative uses of existing data. 

—

BRUSSELS, 25 January 2023 – Today, a coalition of associations representing companies from various sectors of the business community issued a joint statement on the Data Act and its interplay with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Chapter II of the proposal.  

The statement highlights that some provisions in the European Commission’s proposal and some amendments in the LIBE Committee’s draft opinion would restrict certain data processing activities even when carried out in a GDPR-compliant way.

These provisions do not only risk curbing the benefits for innovation, but they are at odds with the Data Act’s objective to empower users who should be free to decide the purposes for sharing their personal data insofar as any data sharing and processing is compliant with the GDPR.

With the GDPR, the EU has set up a modern futureproof data protection framework. Yet, the Data Act could undermine these achievements and the credibility of the GDPR.

Specifically, the coalition calls on EU legislators to:

•       Defer to all the GDPR legal bases and GDPR rules on further processing;
•       Incentivize the use of Privacy Enhancing Technologies (PETs) to maintain high levels of privacy and enable the safe reuse of personal data;
•       Preserve the horizontal nature of the Data Act without excluding data processing activities from certain sectors in full compliance with the GDPR.

The full coalition includes:

ACT - The App Association

AIG -IAB France - Alliance Digitale

CCIA - Computer & Communications Industry Association

EUCOPE - European Confederation of Pharmaceutical Entrepreneurs

FEDMA – Federation of European Data and Marketing

IAB Europe - Interactive Advertising Bureau Europe

IAB Poland - Interactive Advertising Bureau Poland

IAB Spain - Interactive Advertising Bureau Spain

IAB Sweden- Interactive Advertising Bureau Sweden

ITI - Information Technology Industry Council

You can read the full letter here.

New study from IAB Europe and Microsoft Shows that Retail Media is Now an Established Part of Media Plans

13th December 2022, Brussels, Belgium, IAB Europe, the leading European-level industry association for the digital and marketing ecosystem has today announced the results of a new industry survey on retail media advertising. Currently, retail media is one of the fastest growing sectors within the digital advertising industry and IAB Europe forecasts retail media ad spend will reach €25bn in Europe by 2026.

To further understand the retail media opportunity, IAB Europe and its member company Xandr, now part of Microsoft, surveyed over 800 buy-side stakeholders on their current use and experience leveraging retail media. The study also looked at their strategic focus for the sector over the next 12 months.

Retail Media is No Longer an Emerging Channel
The results demonstrate that retail media is a key part of advertising strategies with 92% of advertisers and 74% of agencies already partnering with retailers to reach consumers. Of the small amount that are not engaged with retail media as an advertising channel, 88% of advertisers and 77% of agencies plan to do so in the next 12 months.

First-Party Data Strategy is a Key Opportunity
Data, in particular first-party data, is a key opportunity within retail media, largely driven by the deprecation of the third-party cookie. More than a third of buyers cite this as one of the key drivers of retail media adoption and the majority are already working on their first-party data strategy. Whilst 91% of buyers have a first-party data strategy in place, 49% are still working towards scaling their first-party data strategy.

Scale and Ad Tech Key Challenges to Overcome
As with any new advertising channel, retail media is not without its challenges. A third of respondents cited ‘scale’ and ‘integration with other advertising technologies’ as their top two barriers. Buyers want to be able to purchase their advertising via one or a few technology partners and the lack of retail media ad tech integration remains a stumbling block.

Daniel Knapp, Chief Economist, IAB Europe comments on the factors driving the growth of retail media in Europe: “Retail Media in Europe is already an €8bn market and growing double-digit despite economic headwinds. The pandemic-induced rise of e-commerce, paired with retailers’ first party data in a world of signal loss, and the ability to combine ad exposure and conversion into a single platform are key market drivers. We see further potential for off-site retail media to integrate retailer’s role more widely in the upper marketing funnel.”

“Our research with IAB Europe shows how third-party cookie deprecation has accelerated the adoption of this channel since it offers the benefits of first-party data with closed loop attribution. However, there are still pain points related to scale and technology that are creating challenges for retailers and brands,” comments Paul Longo, Global Head of Retail Media Sales, Microsoft Advertising. “We are passionate about working with both retailers and brands to deliver solutions that drive meaningful business outcomes; solutions that offer retailers the tools and platforms they need to drive scale, efficiency, and performance for brands, and that enable brands to capitalise on this opportunity to reach high value audiences.”

Laura Badea, Commerce Partner, Wavemaker, commented: “The new study from IAB Europe and Microsoft confirms what we have witnessed in the last 12-18 months – the shaping of retail media as a key element in the strategic channel mix. Retail media is no longer seen as bottom-funnel activation; the development of site-serve capabilities and tech solutions which allow advertisers to deploy audience segments built with retailers’ 1st party data across the entire web has enabled the conversation to shift from brand-led to commercial-led outcomes.

The work of the new retail media working group - launched by IAB Europe in October - is therefore critical in helping to define a unified vision and standards to underpin the fast growth that moves at different levels of speed across sectors and markets.”

Amir Rasekh, Director of Nectar360, said: “The results from the IAB Europe and Microsoft study show that retail media presents a real opportunity for brands to reach consumers effectively. We have been building our data-driven Retail Media capability across Sainsbury’s and Argos for many years, with the aim of driving enhanced levels of personalisation for our customers and strong returns for clients.”

IAB Europe launched its Retail Media Working Group to enable collaborative conversations, provide education and insights, and create recommendations to shape and define this exciting advertising space. The new working group is open to all IAB Europe members and will provide education on the retail media landscape, the benefits, and use cases as well as insights and standards to enable the market to continue to grow.

Download the IAB Europe and Microsoft Industry Insider to access the survey insights and perspectives from the industry.

IAB Europe has been working with IAB Canada and IAB Techlab to build the Transparency and Consent Framework (TCF) for the Canadian ecosystem. The TCF is designed to unify data privacy laws across Europe, and is the only consent solution built for the industry by the industry. The newly launched TCF Canada will act as a roadmap for publishers, technology vendors, agencies, advertisers and digital marketers to ensure they are working under appropriate legal purposes for processing personal data in the Canadian market. Please refer to the below press release from IAB Canada for more information:

November 28, 2022, Toronto, Ontario Canada: IAB Canada, the national trade association and thought leader for the Canadian interactive marketing and advertising industry, in partnership with IAB Tech Lab and IAB Europe, today announced the launch of the Transparency and Consent Framework (TCF) for Canada. 

TCF Canada acts as a roadmap for publishers, technology vendors, agencies, advertisers and digital marketers to ensure they are working under appropriate legal purposes for processing personal data in the Canadian market.  

“As the industry moves towards privacy-first solutions to addressing audiences online, the launch of TCF Canada represents a major milestone for ad tech. Standardized definitions and reliable frameworks based on signals, help drive solid industry codes of conduct,” said Sonia Carreno, President, IAB Canada, “global collaboration with our members and peers over the past two years has resulted in a pressure-tested, scalable framework that meets the needs of the ecosystem today with an eye towards the future-state of advertising in a privacy-first world.” 

The TCF provides technical specifications and policy documents to help players in the digital marketing and advertising ecosystem clearly and consistently communicate with end users about how their data is being used, while also providing an opportunity for users to object and manage their consent preferences. It is a framework for publishers, technology vendors, agencies and advertisers to clearly and consistently communicate with end users about how their data is being used, while also providing an opportunity for users to withdraw their consent. 

TCF Canada is another critical piece in industry’s effort to increase consumer transparency and choice, management by digital properties of consent and compliance, and industry collaboration that centres on standardization. 

“Two years ago, IAB Tech Lab committed to delivering a platform for vendors and Consent Management Platforms (CMPs) to access cross-jurisdictional compliance signals in a standardized way. We delivered on that promise with the launch of the Global Privacy Platform (GPP) last month.” said Anthony Katsur, CEO IAB Tech Lab, “IAB Canada’s TCF string presents the first of many signals that will address the patchwork of privacy obligations across international markets.”  

Register today for TCF Canada 

All vendors and CMPs can now register to participate in TCF Canada at the updated registration site here. Registration for TCF Canada includes the opportunity to register for both TCF Canada and TCF V 2.0 (for GDPR compliance) Existing participants in IABs TCF V 2.0 (for GDPR compliance) can update their details to include TCF Canada registration. 

The registration process for vendors requires adherence to the TCF Policy and Terms & Conditions. 

Publishers can use the Global Vendor List (GVL) to view the vendors who are participating in the TCF Canada, and to determine which vendors to include in the transparency and consent user interface they make available on their website.

Appropriate time will be given for the Canadian market to adopt the framework providing publisher websites and Consent Management Platforms (CMPs) with an appropriate timeframe in which to adopt TCF Canada. While also providing the vendors they work with sufficient time to develop and implement the code needed to adhere to the protocol of TCF Canada. In Q1 of 2023 the compliance program will be put into operation and CMPs will be required to undergo and pass a CMP validation to ensure they are operating under the policies of the framework. Those who do not comply will be removed from the program. 

To find out more about TCF Canada or to register please visit our website and if you have any questions please reach out to tcfcanada@iabcanada.com. 

PRESS RELEASE 

Brussels, 29th September 2022, IAB Europe, the leading European-level industry association for the digital marketing and advertising ecosystem, today announced the results of its annual ‘Attitudes to Programmatic Advertising Study’.

Now in its eighth year, this study has become an industry benchmark and helpful insight to show how programmatic advertising attitudes, adoption and strategies are evolving. This year the study tripled in responses with over 1000 industry professionals taking part across 29 markets in Europe. The respondents represent four stakeholder groups - advertisers, agencies, publishers, and ad tech vendors - to ascertain the views and directions from the entire ecosystem. More than half of the respondents across advertisers, agencies and publishers manage annual advertising budgets of €1m or above.

Nick Welch, Head of EMEA Programmatic Sales at IAS and Programmatic Trading Committee Chair at IAB Europe said: The "Attitudes to Programmatic Advertising 2022 Study' serves as an important annual benchmark towards programmatic strategies in digital advertising. The widening of the research shows its focus across various players in the industry from multiple markets. We're grateful for all the respondents to the study and helping set the agenda for the coming 12 months. Even amongst the backdrop of tightening budgets and further media scrutiny, it's encouraging to see that investment in programmatic is likely to increase. Alongside this, we're witnessing tremendous appetite across growing environments such as CTV and audio. However, marketers must play a crucial role in these areas, ensuring that balance is found between optimising media spend, data transparency and delivering a targeted and enjoyable consumer experience."

Positive Outlook Driven by Connected TV
All stakeholders (74% of advertisers, 80% of agencies and 68% of publishers) are expecting their programmatic investment to increase over the next 12 months. There seems to be consensus around connected TV as a key growth area; more than 50% of all stakeholder groups cite this as a key to programmatic growth over the next 12 months. Voice, almost non-existent as key to growth in previous years - makes a strong appearance this year with 32% of advertisers and 28% of agencies citing this as a key growth area.

Commenting further on the investment trends, James Collins, SVP, Media Network, Rakuten Advertising said “The annual Attitudes to Programmatic Report from IAB Europe is an important indicator for the industry on the opportunities and challenges for programmatic advertising. It’s positive to see that CTV remains the largest growth area for programmatic, with key learnings in this report hopefully the industry can take a step closer to capitalising on this opportunity.”

Media Cost Efficiencies Are Key to Investment
More than a quarter of advertisers and agencies ranked cost efficiencies as the most important driver for programmatic investment. This is closely followed by granularity of controls and transparency of reporting. Advertisers also cite costs as a barrier to investment; 22% ranked it as the number 1 barrier. Quality of media is also a concern (38% ranked this as the first or second barrier to investment). For agencies, hiring and training staff is a key barrier to programmatic investment.

Advertisers Shift from In-Housing to a More Dynamic Approach
In 2021 50% of advertisers said they had an in-house model. This seems to have dropped significantly to 16% in 2022. There seems to be a more hybrid or dynamic approach with advertisers tapping into a range of methods such as outsourcing to a DSP, independent trading desk etc. This is perhaps being driven by the struggle to source the correct talent, paving the way for consultancies to play a more vital role in the process.

Interaction and Quality Metrics Are Key to Measurement
When asked which metrics are important to evaluate display campaigns that are traded programmatically, the majority of advertisers cited social interactions as the most important, as opposed to sales which was the top metric in 2021 (59% vs 37%). For agencies and publishers, it is in delivering quality metrics (60% and 53% respectively) that is most important.

Shift in the Type of Data Used for Audience Targeting
The study shows a decrease in the use of first-party data alongside an increase in second-party data. Whilst 2021 showed first-party data was the priority for advertisers, agencies, and publishers in 2021, this is now ranked third behind second-party data (the most popular priority averaging 57% with agencies leading at 60%) and third-party at 49%.

The report, written by industry experts from IAB Europe’s membership, and forms part of a comprehensive programme of pan-European educational and guidance outputs published by the IAB Europe Programmatic Trading Committee. The full report with accompanying graphs can be downloaded from IAB Europe’s website HERE.

About IAB Europe
IAB Europe is the European-level association for the digital marketing and advertising ecosystem. Through its membership of media, technology and marketing companies and national IABs, its mission is to lead political representation and promote industry collaboration to deliver frameworks, standards and industry programmes that enable business to thrive in the European market.

Authored by Industry Leaders from Across Europe

Provides insights and guidance for buyers starting to explore eCommerce and retail media opportunities

7th September, Brussels, Belgium: IAB Europe, the leading European-level industry association for the digital and marketing ecosystem has today released its ‘Guide to Ecommerce for Digital Advertising’ to provide an introduction to eCommerce and retail media advertising in Europe. The Guide, which is aimed at buyers that are starting to explore opportunities in this category, provides insights into how e-commerce works, the available ad formats, and considerations and best practices for the digital advertising ecosystem. 

As people increasingly use online channels to shop for goods and services, the relative importance of eCommerce and retail media in the broader marketing mix is only going to grow and IAB Europe estimates that it could reach €24.8bn by 2026. 

This introductory Guide highlights some of the ad formats, buying methods, measurement options and key considerations and best practices for buyers using eCommerce retail media advertising. As the category develops, IAB Europe will continue to support buyers and the whole ecosystem in their retail media journeys. Working across the industry, we will continue to provide advice, recommendations, and market intelligence as appropriate.  

IAB Europe’s Chief Economist, Daniel Knapp comments “Since the pandemic, Europe has seen an explosion of retail media networks. Fuelled by changing consumer shopping habits, 1st party data and closed-loop attribution, ad spend is following quickly. Retail media ad spend in Europe was €7.9bn in 2021. Although that includes Amazon with an estimated 75% share, endemic retailers and commerce platforms are growing market share. As the looming recession puts a dent in ad spend growth, we expect retail media to outperform the market.”

Commenting on the value of ecommerce and retail media advertising for brands, David Sequeira, Managing Director EMEA, Skai said “We are at a time where advertising budgets require more accountability, consumers demand more personalized experiences and data deprecation makes open web advertising more challenging. Brands are rethinking their marketing strategies in favour of channels where consumers are open to advertising, not reliant on cookies and can easily be tied back to the bottom line. Retail media, with its rich first-party data, ticks all of the boxes.”

Commenting on the importance of good creative for Ecommerce advertising, Tom Ellis, Director of Ad Creative, Yahoo! Said ‘"Formats like shoppable ads have brought ecommerce opportunities right up to the top of the marketing funnel. They don't have to be complex and they are not complex to produce in order to deliver great results and conversions for clients. Having a clear call to action, price and product image is key, combined with partners that can place the ads in the right environments and context to inspire action in consumers in the moment."

It’s been a collaborative effort to produce this European-level industry guide for Ecommerce Advertising, with contributors including Criteo, PubMatic, Perpetua, Skai, Xandr and Yahoo!

The Guide to Ecommerce for Digital Advertising can be downloaded from IAB Europe’s website here.

92% prefer to spend their advertising budget with suppliers that adhere to industry standards

Brussels, Belgium, 14 July 2022 – IAB Europe, the leading European-level industry association for the digital advertising and marketing ecosystem, today released results of a new survey, which surveyed buyers to identify their digital advertising quality concerns and understand their attitudes towards industry standards, and different types of inventory.

The survey, developed by national IABs within IAB Europe’s European Quality Working Group, found that the role of industry standards, such as the IAB UK Gold Standard, Digital Ad Trust in France or IAB Poland QUALID, is paramount. 84% of all buyers said that they are willing to pay a premium price for higher quality, trusted inventory whilst 92% said that they prefer to spend their advertising budget with suppliers that adhere to industry standards. Additionally 73% said that they check if a media owner or supplier adheres to industry standards before spending budget with them. Only 19% of buyers that responded to the survey said that they don’t mind about industry standards at all.This decreased to 6% if the buyer was in a market with a national quality standard.

A vast amount of work is being undertaken in Europe to improve and uphold quality standards in digital advertising as outlined in the IAB Europe Quality Initiatives Navigator. In 2017, IAB UK created the Gold Standard in order to tackle quality concerns. Fast forward to today, there are now seven markets with a national quality standard or scheme in place. The results suggest these standards help raise awareness of quality concerns, such as brand safety and ad fraud; buyers in markets with a national standard vs. those in a market without were more likely to be aware of those concerns.

In terms of the key quality concerns, the survey found that when buying digital advertising, viewability and brand safety are considered the biggest issues for advertisers and agencies. 89% said they were concerned or very concerned about viewability and 79% said the same about brand safety.

The survey also asked buyers about the areas most in need of the development of standards and CTV came out on top closely followed by Audio and DOOH.

Marie-Clare Puffett, Senior Manager, Marketing & Industry Programmes at IAB Europe said: “The results of the study we are releasing today, provides reassurance, for the national IABs that already have a quality standard in place and those that are in the process of creating one, that buyers value those standards when spending their budgets within our ecosystem. The work of our European Quality Working Group is important to ensure harmonisation so that International businesses don’t have to adhere to a multitude of different standards across Europe.”

Tim Elkington, Chief Digital Officer, IAB UK commented: “The fact that 92% of advertisers and agencies prefer to spend their budget with suppliers that adhere to industry standards underscores the vital importance of creating shared standards at a national level - such as the Gold Standard in the UK - as well as building consistency of standards between different markets. Increasing collaboration between IABs can play an essential role here, making it easier for our members to navigate and adhere to digital advertising best practice at both a national and international level.”

Wlodek Schmidt, President, IAB Poland and Chair, IAB Europe Board of Directors commented on the importance of a national quality standard in a fast growing market: “In 2021, digital advertising accounted for half of all ad spend in Poland, meaning Poland was on par with the more mature markets in terms of digital ad spend. With this in mind, we as an industry need to focus our efforts to combat cybercrime and advertising fraud more than ever. Following the example of the most advanced markets in Western Europe and the USA, IAB Poland established the QUALID Programme which aims to develop, collect, and promote positive and effective solutions that will contribute to improving the quality of digital advertising in Poland.”

Access the results here

Notes:
Markets with a national quality scheme - UK, France, Poland, Germany, Sweden, Ireland, Italy
Markets without a scheme - Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Hungary, Macedonia, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine

For more information, please contact:

Lauren Wakefield, IAB Europe (wakefield@iabeurope.eu / +44 7828 514 193)
Marie-Clare Puffett, IAB Europe (puffett@iabeurope.eu / +44 7973 836 917)

As the negotiations on the Digital Services Act (DSA) package reach a climax in the European Parliament’s Internal Market and Consumer Protection committee (IMCO), the campaign corrects some of the untruths originating in some political circles in Brussels.  Building on a wealth of existing evidence about the value of targeted advertising, it reminds policymakers that there are no easy wins in the complex area of digital policymaking. 

Proposals to ban or restrict targeted ads in Europe would have serious, far-reaching consequences. Data-driven advertising is crucial for the small businesses that depend on it to find customers, for the publishers who rely on it for revenues, and for the millions of users across Europe who want the freedom to choose which online content and services they pay for via subscription and which they access in exchange for a willingness to receive advertising. 

The digital campaign features short videos asking viewers to consider who really loses out when access to highly effective, low cost tools is taken away from businesses. The videos are available on a dedicated landing page here and will be shared extensively online. 

Commenting on the campaign, IAB Europe CEO Townsend Feehan said: ‘‘The aim of the DSA - to make the internet a place European consumers can navigate with confidence, including by reducing the incidence of online disinformation - is a crucial one that the online advertising industry supports on the merits and out of self-interest. We fully endorse provisions in the original DSA proposal such as mandatory information disclosures on the identity of the advertiser, including for issue-based and political advertising, that go beyond what is already laid down in EU privacy and data protection law.

But a move to ban “targeted” advertising would penalise SMEs and small publishers without necessarily having any material impact on online disinformation. As often in politics, there are no easy wins. We hope these short videos will encourage MEPs to resist the temptation to lay on more rules and instead insist that the existing rules be effectively enforced.” 

The #NoEasyWins campaign highlights how targeting is essential to growing advertising revenue which has become even more important for Europe’s SMEs and other data-driven businesses due to the COVID-19 pandemic forcing them to shift their marketing exclusively online. Earlier this year, in an open letter these businesses - from the worlds of digital media publishers to content creators, entrepreneurs, and software developers - voiced their firm opposition to a ban on targeted ads, instead calling on the EU policymakers to focus on effective enforcement of the EU’s current data protection framework.

Attesting to the critical importance of ad revenues for smaller players, Benedikt Blomeyer, Director EU Policy at Allied for Startups, said: ‘‘For startups, targeted ads are a great equalizer, enabling them to challenge big incumbents on the basis of their product. Many startups run targeted ads, almost all startups use ads. An outright ban on targeted ads would ultimately make it harder for innovative products and services to reach businesses and consumers in Europe.’’

Confirming ad-related growth opportunities in the Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) and smaller markets, Marcin Nowacki, Vice-President of the Union of Entrepreneurs and Employers and the President of European Enterprise Alliance, acknowledged:  “Targeted advertising supports thousands of small and medium businesses in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) allowing them to connect with new customers and helping them to grow. There are no easy wins in digital policymaking, but a ban on targeted advertising would be extremely short-sighted and would ultimately harm the CEE economy at a particularly fragile time.”  

Finally, Tamara Daltroff, Director General of the European Association of Communications Agencies, shed some light on the broader, wide-ranging value of advertising:  “Targeted ads are a valuable tool used by businesses of all sizes, including start-ups and SMEs, NGOs and publishers across Europe. A ban on targeted ads would deprive them of reaching local and relevant customers, clients and supporters. Also, targeted ads play a critical role in funding a free and pluralistic internet and keeping the digital economy and information accessible to all.”

The #NoEasyWins campaign is a digital campaign centred on a number of videos which are available at the following site: www.noeasywins.eu.

At issue is the Transparency and Consent Framework (TCF), which provides essential guidance for entities involved in digital advertising, to assist them in compliance with the GDPR. Managed by IAB Europe, the TCF was developed through a process which took three years and involved almost 100 organisations, multiple iterations and two major revisions. More information is available here.

The Inspection Service of Belgium’s Data Protection Authority recently contacted IAB Europe with a report that made a number of allegations about the Transparency and Consent Framework and about IAB Europe’s role in relation to it. IAB Europe will be providing a full written response to the report in due course.

Following presentation of IAB Europe’s written statement, and potentially statements from complainants, the Inspection Service will present its findings to the Litigation Chamber, an administrative court still within the Belgian Data Protection Authority. IAB Europe will also have recourse to appeal in the Belgian Courts.

Please see below a media release issued by IAB Europe on 29 October.

Brussels, 29th October: IAB Europe refutes criticisms of Transparency and Consent Framework

Commenting on recent media coverage of the Belgian Data Protection Authority’s report into IAB Europe’s Transparency and Consent Framework, Townsend Feehan, CEO of IAB Europe, said:

“It is surprising and disappointing to see the degree to which the initial media coverage of this got the contents of the report completely wrong. The report does not constitute an indictment of the Transparency & Consent Framework (TCF). Its findings in relation to the Transparency and Consent Framework reflect a basic misunderstanding of how it works, and as a consequence are either not relevant or highly subjective. 

For example, the finding that the Transparency and Consent Framework needs rules on the processing of special category data is incompatible with the fact that you cannot use the Framework to process such data. Similarly, IAB Europe is not indifferent to non-compliant behaviour. TCF Policies contain explicit requirements for participants to notify IAB Europe where they identify a breach and to cease working with non-compliant parties.

Generally, IAB Europe strives to ensure full compliance with TCF Policies and the best practices set out therein, but in no way purports to take on the responsibility of enforcing the GDPR, a responsibility which falls on those authorities specifically designated for that purpose by the regulation. 

Commenting on the characterisation of IAB Europe as a ‘data controller’ under the terms of the GDPR, Feehan said:

The real story in the report is the novel and unsubstantiated finding that an industry association that operates a standard intended to help its members comply with the law can be considered to be a data controller, thereby sharing legal liability with every company that implements the standard. This interpretation, if upheld, would eliminate at a stroke the possibility for any industry to develop a GDPR Code of Conduct, since such codes inevitably need a host organisation, and no non-profit organisation would ever contemplate taking on such risk.

The report’s impact on the Framework is negligible.  Its impact on IAB Europe as an organisation, and on any other standards body operating in Belgium, is potentially detrimental, though it is unclear what consumer protection, if any, is advanced by this.

In conclusion, Feehan stated:

“The Transparency and Consent Framework is the most sophisticated and scrutinised model of GDPR compliance for digital advertising in the world. This preliminary report is only the first stage of the Belgian Data Protection Agency’s review and it has no impact on  the operation of the Framework.

We pride ourselves on collaboration with all stakeholders and look forward to engaging with the Belgian authority on this matter, just as we have already engaged with several Data Protection Authorities in the development of the latest version of the Framework.

We take issue with many of the claims in the report but it is worth emphasising that we are only at an early stage. We will be making a robust defence of the Framework and the hundreds of thousands of website and app publishers and advertisers who rely on it every day to guide their operations.”

Press contacts:

• Helen Mussard | mussard@iabeurope.eu | +44 (0) 73999 19594
• Ronan Breen | ronan.breen@thisisredflag.com | +32 471 75 30 53

Virtual events and webinars

As many of us remain in lockdown or are practicing social distancing, it’s more important than ever to enable people to benefit from the digital infrastructure. IAB Europe is known for hosting virtual events and webinars to bring people from across Europe and beyond together. Following on from our Virtual Programmatic Days, TCF workshops and educational webinars - all delivered online - we want to continue to support and guide our members during the COVID-19 pandemic. As such, IAB Europe will be hosting more virtual events so the industry remains connected and keeps collaborating and innovating. Please click here to see what's coming up.

Economic Trends Forum

Led by Dr. Daniel Knapp, IAB Europe’s Chief Economist, The Economic Trends Forum (ETF) offers market analysis and industry insights for our corporate members and network of National IABs. Throughout the pandemic, we will be focusing all ETFs on the Impact of COVID-19 on our industry. Daniel will provide an economic outlook for the digital marketing and advertising industry based on his analysis of market trends and financial reports. These are must attend sessions for anyone working within the industry who wants to see what immediate changes COVID-19 will bring and how this will impact businesses across the value chain. Click here to access the webinar recordings and register for upcoming events.

Interact Online

Given the current circumstances regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, IAB Europe has taken the decision to postpone its flagship annual event, Interact, until 2021, and will instead be hosting a virtual event on 3rd June. This free-to-attend virtual conference will allow the digital advertising and marketing industry to interact online! It’s never been more important to come together to help support, build and sustain our innovative industry. Expert speakers include senior executives from Coca-Cola, Zalando, Google, ProSieben, RTL, GroupM and OMD. Click here full event details and registration.

Committee Meetings

Our committees are the backbone of our organisation. These groups bring together industry leaders and experts to support the growth and development of digital marketing and advertising in Europe. It will be business as usual for our monthly committee and task force meetings. All of these currently take place online and we will continue to follow the action packed work plans which have some great outputs planned for Q2 including a Post-Cookie Navigator, European level Brand Safety definitions, Effectiveness Measurement Framework, Connected TV best practices and Policy and TCF related programmes. So if you would like to continue to network and collaborate from the comfort of your home, the committees look forward to welcoming new members, also to benefit from relevant best practices undertaken by the industry as we are adapting to the current situation. Find out more about the committees here. Participation remains free to IAB Europe members.

Resources & Support 

Our Knowledge Hub features IAB Europe and member research reports, webinar recordings, white papers, case studies and infographics. It’s a one stop shop for market insight and guidance on a range of topics including advertising spend, consumer attitudes, media consumption, brand advertising and measurement. Any exclusive ‘members only’ content will be available for free during COVID-19. You can access the Knowledge hub here.

In our Economic Trends Forum webinar on 21st April, IAB Europe Chief Economist Dr. Daniel Knapp provided an economic outlook for the digital marketing and advertising industry based on his analysis of market trends and financial reports. The recording is available here and the slides available to members here.

Alongside the economic perspective and outlook in this webinar we have undertaken an industry poll to understand industry opinion on the impact of COVID-19. The results of this poll are available here.

Stay Updated & Informed

From our weekly newsletter (sent to over 11k people) and our social media channels, we will be providing daily updates on the latest news and views from us and the wider industry. If you have any news, research or thought leadership you’d like to share, please email Helen Mussard mussard@iabeurope.eu or Marie-Clare Puffett puffett@iabeurope.eu.

For any additional information or support from the IAB Europe team, please contact communication@iabeurope.eu.

We hope you all keep safe and well,

Your IAB Europe Team

]]> https://iabeurope.eu/iab-europes-cheif-economist-talks-to-exchangewire-about-the-impact-of-covid-19/ Thu, 26 Mar 2020 14:59:28 +0000 https://iabeurope.eu/iab-europes-cheif-economist-talks-to-exchangewire-about-the-impact-of-covid-19/ In the first of a series covering the effect of the ongoing outbreak of the Covid-19 strain of coronavirus upon the advertising industry, ExchangeWire spoke to a variety of technology vendors and industry associations for their insight into how the sector can successfully adapt during such unprecedented times. IAB Europe's Chief Economist Daniel Knapp was one of the experts to share their views. Read his view below and access the full article on Exchangewire's website here.

A period of radical change

Many adtech and martech companies and platforms exist on narrow margins, so need the volume and diversity of their client base, including SMEs, to thrive. To support the industry ecosystem, new, flexible payment terms are going to be required whilst endemic issues, such as brand safety, will need to be addressed, as the surge in readership and news attention has not translated into increased publisher revenues. With these companies’ unique position, between message and end user, there is the opportunity to be altruistic and serve society by bringing socially-important, public service announcements to the people who need them.

However, it is apparent that this crisis will impact ad spend: with entire industry segments halting and retooling production lines for basic goods to combat the crisis comes a major lag in the ability of ad spend to recover. That being said, the impact will differ across the advertising world: structural shifts in how businesses operate will upend how people work and collaborate and accelerate trends in digital transformation. Companies will be forced to be more radical, throw off legacy structures and position themselves in a much leaner manner. This will inevitably, eventually, lead to more ad budgets moving into the digital domain. Those companies who navigate the recession, and survive this period of radical change, will come out stronger on the other side.

Daniel Knapp, Chief Economist, IAB Europe