Brussels, 11^th September 2018

Today, the European Authority (the operating division of the European Viewability Initiative, resourced by IAB Europe and EACA) announces the appointment of these three independent, media auditing organisations to undertake annual technical measurement audits of any company providing viewability measurement services across Europe. This will enable viewability measurement companies to achieve appropriate European accreditation (via a Certification Seal), recognised by all markets in the region and removing the need for further national accreditation. In turn, it will also complement the drive for higher quality standards in digital advertising across all markets.

This decision follows a Request for Proposals (RFP) process in which seven experienced auditing companies submitted detailed responses. The subsequent RFP evaluation process was led by the key stakeholders of the European Authority with expert support from the Technical Committee, appointed by the European Viewability Steering Group (EVSG).

The approved auditors were determined by a series of factors, including - clear demonstration of expertise and capabilities, sophisticated audit methodology and competitive pricing structure. Each of the 3 auditors will work closely with the European Authority along with the appropriate National Authority (i.e. cross-industry bodies in the UK - JICWEBS, Germany - AGOF/BVDW and France - Digital Ad Trust). In turn, each viewability measurement company will be able to select their preferred auditor.

The European Authority will grant licence agreements to the auditors on the basis of the proposed audit methodology and cost forecasts outlined within the respective RFP submissions. The immediate next step will be the delivery, by each auditor, of an effective ‘real-world’ audit test environment. The European Authority & associated Technical Committee will review and approve each of these test environments in advance of any audits being undertaken.

The purpose of the audits is to evaluate the performance of the technical approach offered by the viewability measurement companies according to the requirements of the European Viewability Measurement Principles (developed and published by the EVSG). Following each audit, the chosen auditor will produce an Evaluation Report – summarising the results to enable the European authority to assess whether a European Seal of Accreditation should be issued for the viewability measurement tool under scrutiny.

In the few markets where a national viewability certification process already exists, the European Authority is working with the relevant stakeholders to ensure a smooth transition and adoption of the European Certification Framework.

This Framework has been designed to offer a consistent solution across all

European markets - irrespective of the existing status quo. In the interests of contributing towards the development of consistent, global standards the European approach should also provide useful guidance for other regions or markets seeking to develop similar solutions.

Quotes on behalf of key stakeholders involved

Alison Fennah, Executive Business Advisor, IAB Europe said: “The appointment of these auditors is the key next step in the implementation of the European Viewability Initiative. Agreed standards and third party auditing are vital for a healthy digital ecosystem and we look forward to measurement companies taking advantage of this certification to drive their business across the region and beyond.”

Jon Chase, Board Director and Chair Media Agencies Council, EACA noted: “EACA remain fully committed to driving improved viewability measurement standards across Europe and beyond. We look forward to partnering with the chosen auditors to undertake Europe-wide audits. In turn, providing cross-industry approved certification of the multiple viewability tools. Another crucial step towards enhanced accountability and trust in digital media metrics.”

Richard Foan, Chair at JICWEBS in the UK added: “By agreeing which auditors are asked to undertake reviews the European Viewability Initiative takes another important step for European harmonisation and simultaneously contributes towards global standards for local markets. JICWEBS will continue to play its part in progressing this initiative and working with other stakeholders to address the remaining transition related questions”

Thomas Duhr (Vice-President at BVDW) said on behalf of the cross-industry team at BVDW-AGOF in Germany: "We are fully supportive of this European Viewability initiative that brings together relevant stakeholders - marketers, media agencies, measurement service providers - to help improve quality assurance across the digital advertising industry. In turn, it will be a key part of the Digital Trust initiative in Germany developed as a basis to establish a uniformly high level of marketing quality.”

Jean-Marie Le Guen (Director General, IAB France) commented on behalf of the Digital Ad Trust in France: “The selection of auditors is a major step in the development of a consistent approach in the auditing of viewability measurement services across Europe. The appointment of carefully selected auditors will provide greater transparency on the market and will allow stakeholders to make sure their viewability measurement tools meet the best performance standards. Digital Ad Trust members are committed to developing transparency and accountability to increase trust and create value for all stakeholders and, as such, fully supports the European Viewability Initiative.”

Valerie Morrisson, Managing Director, CESP, added: “Moving from served to viewable impressions ranks among the top priorities for all stakeholders, as shown in IAB Europe’s annual Report ‘Digital Brand Advertising and Measurement’. I’m pleased to see that EACA and IAB Europe have managed to convince the European countries to join forces to create a pan-European certification process to support this important move for the industry.”

Simon Redlich, Chief Executive at ABC, said: “We’re pleased to be appointed by the European Authority as an independent auditor to support this pan European initiative. Our well established viewability testing processes are recognised for delivering consistent, comparable results and we remain committed to increasing transparency and trust in this area.”

Professor Wolfgang Lehner from GWT-TUD noted: “We are excited to be appointed as one of the official auditors for the European Viewability Initiative. We look forward to providing transparent and objective audits of the viewability measurement tools.”

European Authority representatives

IAB Europe:

• Alison Fennah, Executive Business Advisor, IAB Europe
• Marie-Clare Puffett, Business Programmes Manager, IAB Europe

EACA:

• Jon Chase, Board Director and Chair Media Agencies Council, EACA

Links to relevant documents

• European Viewability Measurement Principles
• Overview of the European Viewability Initiative
• European Viewability Initiative: Q&A related to the press release

Contacts

For further information regarding this initiative, please see below contact details:

EACA (European Association of Communications Agencies)

Jon Chase (Board Director and Chair Media Agencies Council, EACA)

jon.chase@eaca.eu

+44 (0) 7899 657862

IAB Europe

Alison Fennah (Executive Business Advisor)

fennah@iabeurope.eu

+44 (0) 7712 645263

Marie-Clare Puffett (Business Programmes Manager)

puffett@iabeurope.eu

+44 (0) 7805 819 373

About IAB Europe

IAB Europe is the leading European-level industry association for the digital advertising ecosystem. Its mission is to promote the development of this innovative sector and ensure its sustainability by shaping the regulatory environment, demonstrating the value digital advertising brings to Europe’s economy, to consumers and to the market, and developing and facilitating the uptake of harmonised business practices that take account of changing user expectations and enable digital brand advertising to scale in Europe.

www.iabeurope.kinsta.cloud |       @IABEurope  |        IAB Europe

About EACA 

The European Association of Communications Agencies (EACA) represents more than 2,500 communications agencies and agency associations from 30 European countries that directly employ more than 120,000 people. EACA members include advertising, media, digital, branding and PR agencies. EACA promotes honest, effective advertising, high professional standards and awareness of the contribution of advertising in a free market economy and encourages close co-operation between agencies, advertisers and media in European advertising bodies. EACA works closely with EU institutions to ensure freedom to advertise responsibly and creatively.

www.eaca.eu | @EACA_eu | info@eaca.eu

About ABC

ABC delivers a stamp of trust for the UK media industry. Owned and developed jointly by UK media owners, advertisers and agencies to set industry-agreed standards for media brand measurement across print, digital and events. ABC is also a trusted verification provider - auditing media brand measurement data and the adoption of good practice and process to industry-agreed standards. Established in 1931, ABC was the first UK Joint Industry Currency (JIC) and founding member of the International Federation of ABCs.

www.abc.org

 About CESP

CESP (Centre d’Étude des Supports de Publicité) is a non-profit organization created in 1957, regrouping the different stakeholders of the French media industry: media owners and their sales houses as well as media agencies and advertisers. CESP conducts two main types of missions: audits in France (for all media currency studies) and abroad, and consultancy missions locally and internationally. Eighteen permanent staff work at CESP and are supported by a high profile Scientific Committee of 16 professionals from the academic and media industry fields, involved in all audits carried out by CESP.

www.cesp.org

 About GWT-TUD

GWT-TUD GmbH is a R&D service provider headquartered in Dresden. Founded in 1996, GWT-TUD GmbH works at the interface of public research institutions, like TU Dresden, one of eleven German Universities of Excellence, and industry. With more than 500 projects per year, totaling over 25 million euros in volume, the company is among the top technology transfer organizations in Germany.

https://gwt-en.wp.mpkunden.de

Access the latest version of the interactive version of the guide here or download the new PDF version below.

IAB Europe Transparency Guide PDF

The Report draws on a survey of approximately 650 buy and sell-side stakeholders from across Europe1. The results echo the findings of the 2017 IAB Europe Digital Measurement Priorities Report2 highlighting that industry-wide solutions are yet to be agreed for cross-media measurement and quality metrics.

Cross-media and cross-device measurement is key; both buy and sell-side stakeholders indicate that cross-media evaluation and a better understanding of how digital works in combination with other channels are important to drive more digital brand advertising investment. This is further supported by the fact that the top key performance indicators that stakeholders want to use for digital are those associated with traditional media, e.g. brand awareness and purchase intent. Indeed, online video, a popular format for digital branding campaigns saw growth of 35% according to the IAB Europe AdEx Benchmark 2017 study.

As per ongoing industry discussions, viewability and brand safety are top of mind when it comes to determining contact or environment quality. All stakeholders agree that increased trading on viewable rather than served impressions is important.

The Report draws on a survey of 700+ buy and sell-side stakeholders from across Europe¹. The results echo the findings of the first IAB Europe Digital Measurement Priorities Report² highlighting that industry-wide solutions are to be found across these areas. This is particularly important in the context of the fact that digital ad spend now leads TV by over €7bn³ and investments in programmatic advertising continue to increase. The top three priorities coming out of the 2017 survey are:

1. Cross-media measurement
2. Integration with programmatic tools
3. Viewability and brand safety for underpinning quality digital advertising

To find out more about IAB Europe’s work in these key areas join the following events:

• IAB Europe panel at dmexco - Measurement and the Future of Digital Trading, 14^th September. Find out more here.
• IAB Europe Virtual Programmatic Day, 9^th November. Find out more here.

Please click below and enter your details to download this Report.

Some of the key topics covered include:

• Bridging the divide between TV and digital to realize the value of cross-platform media planning and buying
• The shift in media planning beyond age and gender towards the use of advanced audience segments
• Addressing mobile measurement challenges to improve monetization and give digital media a bigger seat at the table
• The challenge in measuring unduplicated reach across platforms, including distributed content platforms, to help publishers better articulate their value to advertisers
• The value of moving beyond digital ad viewability to focusing on the metrics that matter like campaign reach and frequency, as well as attitudinal, behavioral and sales lift
• Advancements in sophisticated, multi-touch advertising attribution that better illuminate what’s working so that marketers can allocate their budgets more efficiently

You can download the report off the comScore website here.

There have been industry wide calls to improve the quality of digital ad inventory and develop more robust digital measurement techniques. This is considered a vital step towards delivering more ‘realistic’ brand exposure metrics.
More accurate and consistent viewability measurement will help to establish a more reliable digital ‘opportunity-to see’, supporting the need for enhanced comparability with TV and progress towards digital ‘gross rating points’. The European Viewability Initiative will help to address the following macro, industry goals:

1. Raise minimum quality standards in digital advertising measurement for all stakeholders across Europe
2. Enhance the (internet) user experience in the context of changing user expectations
3. Measure digital ad exposure which is deemed a key step towards increasing confidence in digital ad trading
4. Improve confidence in the digital ad environment

In addition to the above, the primary technical objective is to help significantly reduce data discrepancies between different ‘viewability’ measurement tools via a set of Viewability Measurement Principles.

Download the overview below.

There have been industry wide calls to improve the quality of digital ad inventory and develop more robust digital measurement techniques. This is considered a vital step towards delivering ‘realistic’ brand exposure metrics. More accurate and consistent viewability measurement will help to establish a more reliable digital ‘opportunity-to-see’, supporting the need for enhanced comparability with TV and progress towards digital ‘gross rating points’.

These Principles will help our industry to achieve the following macro goals:

1. To raise minimum quality standards in digital advertising measurement for all stakeholders across Europe.
2. To measure digital ad exposure which is deemed a key step to increasing confidence in digital ad trading.
3. To enhance the (internet) user experience in the context of changing user expectations.
4. To improve confidence in the digital ad environment.

The Principles form part of the European Viewability Certification Framework which has the primary goal of helping to significantly reduce measurement discrepancies across the different viewability tools.

Download the principles below.

Brussels, 10^th August 2017 - The European Viewability Steering Group (EVSG), a cross-industry body originally formed towards the end of 2015 by the Interactive Advertising Bureau Europe (IAB Europe), the European Association of Communications Agencies (EACA) and the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA), today announces the launch of a comprehensive European Viewability Certification Framework.

This includes the publication of the first set of European Viewability Measurement Principles and will soon be followed by the launch of a Request for Proposals (RFP) process to identify suitable auditors across the region.

The Measurement Principles have been created to help reduce discrepancies in the data provided by different viewability measurement tools. Extensive consultation has been conducted with a broad range of industry stakeholder groups including - publishers, media agencies, advertisers, measurement companies, ad technology providers, national, international and cross-industry trade bodies. Notable contributions have been provided by the MRC in the US; JICWEBS in the UK; BVDW, AGOF and OWM in Germany; Digital Ad Trust in France; and key national trade bodies across Europe.

The RFP process will be launched before the end of August and will seek to identify and appoint one or more auditors. Interested companies should contact IAB Europe or EACA. The Measurement Principles will be used as the basis for evaluating the performance of the technical approach undertaken by the viewability measurement companies. An evaluation report will be produced to help inform the potential issuing of a European Seal of Accreditation. The Seal will be recognised by all participating European markets and will remove the need for further market-by-market accreditation.

The EVSG is responsible for shaping the overall strategic direction of the initiative, ensuring it remains relevant and valuable to all stakeholders across Europe. To formalise the involvement of several national markets with developed viewability initiatives, the EVSG is now being enlarged to include nominated market representatives (see page 3).

The ongoing management and implementation of the Certification Framework and awarding of the Seals will be undertaken by a related body called the European Authority (EA) - resourced by representatives from IAB Europe and EACA. The EA will work in conjunction with the appointed national bodies to ensure the certification framework is implemented effectively in each market.

The Certification Framework has been designed to offer a consistent solution across all European markets - irrespective of the existing status quo. In the interests of contributing towards the development of consistent, global standards, the EVSG envisages that the European approach will provide useful guidance for other regions or markets seeking to develop similar solutions.

Quotes from EVSG Founding Member organisations

Alison Fennah, Executive Business Advisor, IAB Europe said: “With digital ad spend surpassing €40bn it’s ever more critical to reinforce the quality of the digital advertising environment to underpin the delivery of free content. Ensuring that viewable impressions are measured correctly and consistently is a key first step. This initiative is designed to enable Europe’s varied markets to collaborate and create regional standards and deliver local growth.”

Jon Chase, Chair Media Agencies Council, EACA noted: “EACA are committed to helping shape and implement the drive towards improved viewability measurement standards across Europe and beyond. The ultimate objective being to establish a fully viewable digital ad environment. Whilst other challenges in the digital advertising ecosystem also require increased focus, reducing data discrepancies between the different viewability tools is a crucial step towards enhanced accountability and trust in digital media metrics.”

 Rob Dreblow, Global Head of Marketing Services, WFA said: “Whilst advertisers investing online often work with their own definitions of a viewable impression, it is critical to have a baseline of quality in terms of how to measure a genuine opportunity to see. Building on the excellent work in the US and UK, we hope this initiative will serve to help markets around the world reduce discrepancies and improve the quality of viewability measurement as this project develops into global guidance.”

Quotes from EVSG National Market Member organisations

Germany:
Thomas Duhr, Vice President, BVDW (rep. IAB Germany) said: “BVDW is pleased to be participating in a European initiative which offers the German market a powerful solution for Viewable Impression measurement discrepancies. BVDW, AGOF and OWM have collaborated to develop a ‘blueprint’ structure to administer the European Certification Framework through active co-operation between the European and national authorities.”

UK:
Richard Foan, Chairman, JICWEBS commented: "We are pleased to support and participate in the European Viewability Initiative to drive greater consistency in viewability measurement across the region. Having initiated the UK certification system for viewability tool vendors in early 2014 and working towards building global standards for local markets, JICWEBS will continue to be involved in the evolution of the European Principles and European Viewability Certification Framework."

France:
Sophie Poncin, President, SRI, representing Digital Ad Trust said: “Viewability is such an important KPI for our industry, it is time to implement European guidance on its measurement. We are proud to support this initiative in France with the Digital Ad Trust Committee.”

Italy:
Assocom, IAB Italy and UPA commented: “The Italian market is looking forward to being involved in the European Viewability Certification Framework to address one of the industry's biggest challenges. This European initiative complements our recently published ‘White Paper of Digital Advertising’ which has been developed as an open, collaborative and cross-industry initiative. This aims to communicate and support a dialogue around hot topics and associated solutions as part of a dynamic digital culture.”

 

END OF PRESS RELEASE

EVSG member organisations and their representatives

IAB Europe:
• Karim Attia, Chair Brand Advertising Committee, IAB Europe
• Alison Fennah, Executive Business Advisor, IAB Europe
• Suzanne McElligott, Board Member, IAB Europe and CEO, IAB Ireland
• Tim Jones, Chair Research Committee, IAB Europe and International Research and Consumer Insight Lead, Oath

EACA:
• Jon Chase, Chair Media Agencies Council, EACA
• Dan Watson, Digital Director, Carat Global
• Bethan Crockett, Digital Risk Director, GroupM

WFA:
• Rob Dreblow, Global Head of Marketing Services, WFA
• Sital Banerjee, Global Head of Media, Philips
• Gerhard Louw, International Media Management & Digital Transformation, Deutsche Telekom

UK - JICWEBS:
• Nigel Gwilliam, Head of Media & Emerging Tech, IPA
• Jon Mew, CEO, IAB UK

Germany - BVDW and AGOF:
• Sven Bornemann, Managing Diector, AGOF
• Katharina Wiegand, Team Leader Digital Business, BVDW

France - Digital Ad Trust (ARPP, Geste, IAB France, SRI, UDA, UDECAM):
• Jean-Baptiste Rouet, UDECAM
• Valérie Chavanne, Vice-President, IAB France
• Hélène Chartier, Director General, SRI

Italy - UPA, IAB Italy and Assocom:
• Anthony Cardamone, Assocom and IAB Italy
• Alberto Vivaldelli, Digital Manager, UPA

Links to relevant documents
Q&A related to the press release
European Viewability Measurement Principles
Overview of the European Viewability Initiative

Contacts
For further information regarding this initiative, please see below contact details:

IAB Europe
Alison Fennah (Executive Business Advisor)
fennah@iabeurope.eu
+44 (0) 7712 645263

EACA (European Association of Communications Agencies)
Jon Chase (Board Director and Chair Media Agencies Council, EACA)
jon.chase@eaca.eu
+44 (0) 7899 657862

About IAB Europe
IAB Europe is the leading European-level industry association for the online advertising ecosystem. Its mission is to promote the development of this innovative sector and ensure its sustainability by shaping the regulatory environment, demonstrating the value digital advertising brings to Europe’s economy, to consumers and to the market, and developing and facilitating the uptake of harmonised business practices that take account of changing user expectations and enable digital brand advertising to scale in Europe.

About EACA
The European Association of Communications Agencies (EACA) represents more than 2,500 communications agencies and agency associations from 30 European countries that directly employ more than 120,000 people. EACA members include advertising, media, digital, branding and PR agencies. EACA promotes honest, effective advertising, high professional standards and awareness of the contribution of advertising in a free market economy and encourages close co-operation between agencies, advertisers and media in European advertising bodies. EACA works closely with EU institutions to ensure freedom to advertise responsibly and creatively.

About WFA
The World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) is the voice of marketers worldwide, representing 90% of global marketing communications spend – roughly US$900 billion per annum – through a unique, global network of the world’s biggest markets and biggest marketers. WFA champions responsible and effective marketing communications worldwide.

Website links to EVSG National Market Member Organisations

UK (JICWEBS – IPA, IAB UK, ISBA, AOP)
Joint Industry Committee for Web Standards (JICWEBS) - https://jicwebs.org/
Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) - https://www.ipa.co.uk/
Internet Advertising Bureau UK (IAB UK) - https://iabuk.net/
Incorporated Society of British Advertisers (ISBA) - https://www.isba.org.uk/
Association of Online Publishers (AOP) - https://www.ukaop.org/

Germany
Bundesverband Digitale Wirtschaft (BVDW) E.V. - https://www.bvdw.org/
Arbeitsgemeinschaft Online Forschung (AGOF) E.V. - https://www.agof.de/?lang=en
Organisation Werbungtreibende im Markenverband (OWM) - https://www.owm.de/index.php?id=76

France (Digital Ad Trust – ARPP, Geste, IAB France, SRI, UDA, UDECAM)
Autorité de régulation professionnelle de la publicité (ARPP)- https://www.arpp.org/
Groupement des éditeurs de contenus et services en ligne (GESTE) –https://www.geste.fr/
Interactive Advertising Bureau France (IAB France) - https://www.iabfrance.com/
Syndicat des Régies Internet (SRI) https://www.sri-france.org/
Union des annonceurs (UDA) – https://www.uda.fr/
Union des Entreprises de Conseil et Achat Media (UDECAM) - https://www.udecam.fr/

Italy
Associazione Aziende di Comunicazione (Assocom) - https://www.assocom.org/
Interactive Advertising Bureau Italy (IAB Italy) – https://www.iab.it/
Utenti Pubblicità Associati (UPA) - https://www.upa.it/eng/index.html

Additional website link to the US Viewability Certification provider (MRC)
Media Rating Council (MRC) - https://mediaratingcouncil.org/

Schedule a meeting and join our panels @ dmexco 2017

Join us  on 13 September at 14.05 CET in Hall 6 / Debate Hall 

IAB Europe CEO, Townsend Feehan, will host The Privacy Debate - Preparing for GDPR: Embracing the inevitable regulations

Becoming effective in 2018, the new General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the upcoming ePrivacy regulations will bring fundamental changes to the legal framework in which every business dealing with data in Europe has to operate. Especially companies who rely on third party data or whose business model is based on tracking people across the internet and using the data will be affected. Critical voices, among them the World Federation of Advertisers, doubt that the digital landscape is already prepared for the implications of the GDPR. Let's get started with the upcoming changes now and discuss the right ways to embrace the inevitable regulations in our industry, from processes and policies through to technology changes.

Speakers:

Dr Sachiko Scheung, European Privacy Officer, Acxiom	Stefan Loerke, CEO WFA	Julia Shullman, Chief Privacy Officer & Deputy GC Appnexus	Donata Hopfen, CEO BILD Group Axel Springer

Join us on 14  September at 13.00 CET in Hall 5.1 / Seminar room 7

IAB Europe will host a panel on Measurement and the Future of Digital Trading

IAB Europe, EACA and WFA have recently launched a European Viewability initiative. The panel will discuss how this will be the basis for reinforcing the quality of the digital advertising environment, increasing investment into digital and driving more comparability between digital and TV measurement. Insights will be shared from the recent IAB Europe Digital Measurement Priorities survey for the latest buy-side and sell-side thinking.

Speakers:

Sital Banerjee, Senior Director Global Head of Media, Philips	Philipp von Hilgers, Managing Director and Co-Founder, Meetrics	Suzanne McElligott, CEO, IAB Ireland	Karim Attia, Chair IAB Europe Brand Advertising Committee	Sylvain Le Borgne, Global EVP of Data Platforms, Havas Media Group

Want to schedule a meeting with us at our booth in Hall 6 / Agency Lounge? Write to us at communication@iabeurope.eu

You can find more info and register for dmexco 2017 here.

Watch the interview here.

The White Paper brings together a range of leading industry experts to provide:

• an overview of the current status of viewable impressions across Europe
• the position of viewable impressions within the context of the wider metrics portfolio
• perspectives from different stakeholders groups within the digital advertising ecosystem
• key definitions and terms
• a list of technical and commercial considerations for trading
• other quality considerations

• Brand advertisers are seeking more information about consumers – including lifestyle, media consumption behaviours and knowing the consumer’s position in the purchase decision process as important to ensure that they deliver relevant advertising at the right time to the consumer.
• To facilitate planning and trading across media channels, brand advertisers want to see data from online audience surveys integrated with other media surveys, with TV integration being more important than other media.
• Brand advertisers want to see an agreed set of key performance indicators to measure their return on digital investment.
• KPIs that ensure consumer connections such as likelihood to recommend and fans/followers are important as well as traditional KPIs such as brand awareness, advertising recall and purchase intent.
• To drive digital investment brand advertisers list various factors in the area of contact quality to be important, namely viewable impressions, time spent and a brand-safe environment.
• Brand advertisers want frequent updates on their key audience to be able to adjust and optimise their campaigns, information about the consumer is key to brands.