GroupM and Crackle Forge Upfront Deal With Multi-Screen Viewability Reporting
GroupM, the leading global media investment management operation of WPP, and television streaming network, Crackle, today announced a deal that will see GroupM agencies placing ads on the streaming entertainment platform. The new deal substantially grows current business between the companies and is fueled by Crackle's commitment to deliver viewability metrics to clients of GroupM's agencies.
Earlier this year, Crackle announced a new innovative collaboration with Moat for the industry's first-ever comprehensive system to track viewable ad measurement across Connected TV—the fastest growing segment on the streaming service—in an effort to provide marketers with a new layer of accountability. By reporting viewability metrics, Crackle distinguishes itself as the first media company to offer accountability across all screens.
Concerning the announcement, GroupM's Global Chairman, Irwin Gotlieb stated, "The scale of GroupM's media investments comes with a responsibility to steer the industry toward greater marketplace integrity. While our position on viewability was an industry-wide challenge some deemed unattainable, we now see progress and have the ability to prioritize media investment with brands like Crackle who deliver both desired audiences and accountability commensurate to the multi-million dollar investments we make."
GroupM has taken a leadership position relative to viewability standards to protect and ensure client value. GroupM requires that 100 percent of an ad must be visible, that video ads must be initiated by users rather than auto-played and that at least 50 percent of the ad is played with the volume on, all verified by an independent third party. GroupM holds that their clients will only pay for ads that are actually viewed.
"As one of the world's largest advertisers, we're putting the weight of our buying power behind measured viewability" said Dan Bracken, Director of Marketing Services, Church & Dwight. "We must get what we pay for—working with Crackle gives us the ability to allocate our investments accordingly and more importantly, ensures that our interests are aligned."
"Our priority at Crackle is to integrate brands in the best custom original programs and to ensure they receive a real return on their investment," said James M. Smith, SVP Ad Sales. "We're proud to take a leadership position in viewability and to have this opportunity to engage our audience with the leading brands supported by GroupM agencies."
This year, Crackle announced a robust slate of original premium content that includes original movie JOE DIRT 2: BEAUTIFUL LOSER, produced by Happy Madison Productions, which premiered July 13th and ranks as the most successful Crackle original film to-date; the fall premieres of its first hour-long drama, The Art of More starring Dennis Quaid, Kate Bosworth, Christian Cooke and Cary Elwes, as well as the stop-motion animated comedy series SuperMansion, with Bryan Cranston, Seth Green, Keegan Michael-Key and Jillian Bell. Crackle's weekly live game show series Sports Jeopardy! with Emmy award-winning sportscaster Dan Patrick will move into the championship games starting on Wednesday, Sept. 9th and its flagship series Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee with Jerry Seinfeld, recently concluded its sixth season in an episode that featured late-night host Stephen Colbert.
About GroupM:
GroupM is the leading global media investment management operation serving as the parent company to WPP media agencies including Mindshare, MEC, MediaCom, and Maxus, each global operations in their own right with leading market positions. GroupM's primary purpose is to maximize performance of WPP's media agencies by operating as leader and collaborator in trading, content creation, sports, digital, finance, proprietary tool development and other business-critical capabilities. GroupM's focus is to deliver unrivaled marketplace advantage to its clients, stakeholders and people.
Discover more about GroupM at www.groupm.com.
Follow @GroupMWorldwide on Twitter
Follow GroupM on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/groupm
About Crackle:
Crackle, a unit of Sony Pictures Television, programs Hollywood movies, popular TV shows, original series and feature films for the worlds connected audience. Available in 21 countries on every screen, Crackle is always freely accessible with no subscription or commitments required. The streaming TV network houses a robust library of original programming available anytime, anywhere on every connected device. Crackle is available on Facebook or follow @Crackle on twitter for real time updates. For additional information, please go to http://www.crackle.com.
Industry Announcements's article first appeared on OnlineVideo.net