Programmatic Speeding Up; MediaMath Acquires Upcast

Here’s today’s AdExchanger.com news round-up… Want it by email? Sign-up here.

Programmatic Gains Speed

Programmatic ad spend in the US will surpass $10 billion this year, according to eMarketer, and is growing at a rate of 137%. According to the research, ad spend on automation will double to $20.4 billion by 2016. “Today publishers largely guard high-value ad inventory such as TV and premium digital video content, though we expect a greater number of ads sold programmatically in these formats starting in 2015,” said eMarketer analyst Lauren Fisher. “Those who do decide to turn to programmatic, however, are likely to do so via programmatic direct, where they can still secure inventory guarantees.”

MediaMath Invests In Social

MediaMath snatched up social ad platform Upcast on Thursday for an undisclosed sum. Upcast’s tech will plug into MediaMath’s TerminalOne platform to support Facebook and Twitter programmatic access. Grant Muckle, Upcast’s managing partner, explains, “MediaMath shares our vision for a dynamic, technology-driven and SaaS-centric future for marketing.” Read the press release.

Hear This

Barely days after Rentrak acquired its US-based TV business, Kantar Media’s made an acquisition of its own. The audience-measurement service has snapped up second-screen advertising platform Civolution’s audio watermarking tools – SyncNow and NexTracker. SyncNow bridges the gap between digital audio and TV, triggering “real-time events” on companion devices by detecting television tune-in through audio tracking. Read the release.

DSP Tracking

Location analytics company Placed is swerving into programmatic territory through a partnership with Adelphic. Though Placed already works with a number of agencies, networks and publishers, CEO David Shim said working with a DSP like Adelphic will help expand the companies’ audiences beyond standard media buyers. Shim told AdExchanger, “Location is like gold in that it closes the loop on 90% of retail transactions that occur in the offline world. Only measuring the online impact of digital advertising is like mining for gold without a pick and shovel, where you miss out on the opportunity right under your feet.” Read more via Street Fight.

Streaming TV

The immediate business impact of cord cutters may be negligible (according to Forrester Research), but HBO and CBS are future-proofing anyway. On Wednesday, HBO said it will offer a standalone streaming service in the US in 2015. Its current web portal, called HBO GO, requires a subscription to a cable service or satellite provider. Not to be outdone, CBS launched its online subscription service CBS All Access, with thousands of episodes of current and classic shows and TV streaming. Video bullion!

Gentzel Potential

Agency execs weigh in on Yahoo’s recent hire, former WaPo CRO Kevin Gentzel, and the consensus is bright. DigitasLBi CIO Adam Schlacter says Gentzel “could be a welcome change.” Jitka Petrickova, managing partner of MEC’s West division, adds that Gentzel will bring vital budget experience to the table. “Budgets over time are not inflatable,” she said. “For Yahoo to grow share [of ad spending], it has to come from other means than digital advertisers. It takes a person with the understanding of how these processes work.” Yahoo’s gearing up to report its Q3 earnings next week, and time will tell if the company can beef up its premium ad products and revive the lagging display revenues that plagued it last quarter. Read more via Ad Age.

You’re Hired!