Tru Optik and Experian Marketing Services Introduce OTT-TV Measurement Solution to Provide Digital TV Currency

With measurement and attribution gaps closed, digital TV ad market poised for explosive growth

Stamford, CT (28 Mar 2016)

Tru Optik, the only audience measurement and data management platform built for OTT and Connected TV, has partnered with Experian Marketing Services, a recognized leader in data-driven marketing and cloud-based marketing technology, to offer a service providing real-time census-level viewer data for over-the-top (OTT) TV programs and ad exposure across all screens. Tru Optik clients will be able to measure and segment content and ad exposure based on lifestyle, demographic and purchase behavior powered by Experian’s ConsumerView marketing database.
 
Tru Optik has the world’s largest database of OTT media and entertainment consumption.  Experian’s ConsumerView is the world’s largest and most accurate consumer marketing database. Together this will allow for comprehensive metrics for valuing advertising on OTT networks and platforms, and close a conspicuous gap in TV audience measurement.
 
It’s widely accepted that digital is the future of TV. One third of Millennial television viewing already occurs “over the top,” mainly via Connected TV (CTV) devices such as Roku, Apple TV, smart TVs and gaming consoles that stream OTT content to TV screens. While OTT offers the possibility of reaching TV viewers with unprecedented precision, barely one percent of TV advertising dollars flow through OTT.
 
Tru Optik has identified three reasons why advertising dollars are not catching up to viewership:
 

• No measurement – advertisers have no visibility to OTT ad exposure, and can’t relate it to other media; 

• Fuzzy targeting – the advertising industry relies on cookies or SDK’s (device-specific software development kits) to capture consumer data for ad targeting. However, CTV is a cookie-less ecosystem accessible via dozens of devices, rendering cookies useless making SDK’s impractical;

• No attribution – lack of measurement means there’s no way to connect OTT ad expenditures to desired outcomes like purchases.

 
Tru Optik CEO, Andre Swanston, sums up the problem neatly: “If you can’t fully measure it, you can’t fully monetize it. Tru Optik’s technology and first-party data combined with Experian’s data will enable media companies and advertisers to understand and value audiences for OTT content. In other words, it will provide the currency that is necessary to truly open not only the OTT ad market, but also provide better insight as to the value of product placement and licensing of content to subscription video services like Netflix and Amazon."
 
By providing census-level audience measurement and profiling data for programming and ad exposure across OTT platforms and connected devices, Tru Optik and Experian Marketing Services have removed all three barriers to OTT advertising and monetization. Tru Optik and Experian Marketing  Services use cookie-less methods that allow anonymous, aggregated behavior and profile information to be connected and protected across all digital devices belonging to the same individuals or households, including CTV. This enables “cross device” OTT and addressable campaign analysis, which is critical for accurate attribution.
 
“Tru Optik is at the forefront of empowering media companies and brands to harness the power of CTV. By partnering with Experian they are adding a trusted and reliable source of audience and consumer data to enhance their measurement and segmentation ability,” said Kevin Dean, President and General Manager of Targeting, Experian Marketing Services.
 
Tru Optik is careful to distinguish its offering from traditional audience measurement products. “This is not a panel based ‘ratings’ service,” said Swanston. “With respect to media companies and marketers, your data belongs to you; it is not part of a Co-op.”
 
“Experian Marketing Services is far and away the industry leader in audience creation for addressable TV, connecting advertisers to 100 percent of the household-level addressable TV operators in the U.S. “ said David Wiesenfeld, Tru Optik’s Chief Strategist. “With Tru Optik already having the world’s largest media consumption database, the addition of purchase, preference, and profiling information from Experian will give clients unmatched insight into their audiences and marketing efficacy.”

About Tru Optik:
Tru Optik is a digital media intelligence company providing audience insight and advertising solutions that empower brand marketers and media companies to fully monetize audience and consumer demand. Armed with the largest census-level measurement of global over-the-top media consumption, Tru Optik’s proprietary data, advanced technology, and unmatched focus make us the preferred partner of many of the world’s largest media companies, brands, and agencies as they navigate the millennial led shift to OTT.
 
About Experian Marketing Services
Experian Marketing Services is a leader in data-driven marketing and cloud-based marketing technology. Experian is the only company in the world to offer a comprehensive Marketing Suite that unites customer insights, analytics, data quality and cross-channel marketing technology into a single platform. Backed by the industry’s highest-rated client services team and the world’s largest consumer database, we provide more than 10,000 brands in more than 30 countries with unique competitive advantages through marketing services and technology. Our extended legacy in data security, management and consumer privacy has earned the trust of organizations and consumers from around the world for more than three decades. For more information, please visit http://www.experian.com/marketing-services.