The Interactive Advertising Bureau of Australia (IAB) and the Media Federation of Australia (MFA) announced today that they have joined forces to launch the IAB-MFA Agency Advisory Group (IMAAG). The Group, which will be chaired by Group M’s Chief Investment and Intelligence Officer Danny Bass, has a core mission to build a bridge between the interactive publishing community and advertising agencies, as well as addressing key industry wide matters.
IMAAG, which is a merger of IAB’s Agency Advisory Board and the MFA’s Interactive Committee, will facilitate dialogue between agencies, publishers, marketers and measurement vendors. Measurement will be a priority for the IMAAG and the Group will also work closely with the IAB Brand Safety council on issues including online traffic fraud.
IAB Australia CEO, Alice Manners commented, “The depth of knowledge and experience of the IMAAG members is unparalleled and we are confident that the Group will provide the market with one strong, consolidated voice.”
According to MFA’s CEO, Sophie Madden IMAAG is a natural collaboration given the close alignment of IAB and MFA on many key issues.
“IMAAG is a unique opportunity to get agencies, publishers and technology partners in the same room, working together towards industry-wide solutions that will shape our industry’s future,” said Madden.
IMAAG’s Chair Danny Bass commented: “There’s always lots of things to look at in the digital space, so the Group will focus on one issue at a time and give it the time and attention it demands. Our first priority will be the development of a code of conduct which will focus on fraudulent traffic, viewability and verification.
“The classification of news sites and definition of premium display are also important issues we wish to address. It is important to acknowledge the importance of quality journalism, educate clients about the benefits of aligning with respected publications, and recognise the significant differences between types of news sites,” said Bass.
IMAAG’s founding members are:
Anya Collingwood - Match Media
Ally Cooney - TMS Australia
Dan Robins - Resolution Media
Danny Bass - Group M
Esther Carlsen - Xaxis
James Greet - Ikon
Jason Tonelli - SMV Group
John Miskelly - Group M
Jonathan Betts - Zenith Optimedia
Peter Hunter - PhD Network
Leigh Terry - OMD
Ros Allison - Zenith Optimedia
Sophie Madden - MFA
Stuart Bailey - OMD
Travis Johnson - Mnet Mobile
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About the Interactive Advertising Bureau
The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) Limited is the peak trade association for online advertising in Australia and was incorporated in July 2010. As one of over 40 IAB offices globally, and with a rapidly growing membership, IAB Australia’s principal objective is to support and enable the media and marketing industry to ensure that they thrive in the digital economy.
IAB Australia’s board includes representatives of Carsales.com, Fairfax Media, Google, Mi9, Network Ten, News Australia, REA Group, Telstra Media Group, TressCox Lawyers and Yahoo!7. It has four objectives:
- To be the ‘big tent’ for the entire digital advertising industry and define the future of digital advertising
- To deliver the benefits of ad funded interactive experiences to Australians
- To develop, coordinate and promote industry standards and guidelines that make interactive advertising a simpler and more attractive medium for agencies, advertisers and marketers
- To prove and promote the effectiveness of interactive advertising to advertisers, agencies, marketers and the press
For further information about IAB Australia please visit: www.iabaustralia.com.au
About the MFA
The Media Federation of Australia (MFA) is the peak body representing media communication agencies, with a membership base representing around 75% of all media billings placed by media agencies in Australia. The MFA exists to champion a dynamic and thriving media industry and our vision is to be a force that makes the media industry better at what we do when it comes mastery in media agencies, the advancement of our people, improvement of the tools we use, and, growth and greater rewards. We represent the common interests of the media industry in three key areas:
- People – To attract and retain the best talent pool of people to work in our industry
- Process – To develop efficient and effective ways of working, tracking and regulating our industry
- Performance – To demonstrate the role our industry plays in growing clients’ businesses, and the compensation this deserves
For further information about the MFA please visit www.mediafederation.org.au