In this weekly segment, ExchangeWire sums up key industry updates on ad tech from around the Asia-Pacific region – and in this edition: IAB AU releases ad effectiveness glossary; Whitepaper looks at China's programmatic video market; Publicis acquires AU agency; Brightcove expands consulting business to ANZ; and comScore brings Extended Video reporting to China.

IAB AU releases ad effectiveness glossary

The recently-established Ad Effectiveness Council of IAB Australia has completed its first project aimed at helping the digital community assess the impact of advertising.

This week, the council released the Advertising Effectiveness Glossary of Terms, which it said detailed various metrics and models currently used in the industry today.

The council was formed in March to look at how digital measurement data could be combined with other forms of media data to improve cross-media planning and buying. The team comprised local representatives from publishers, data agencies, media agencies, research firms, and advertisers.

The Ad Effectiveness Council now would focus on establishing a Best Practice Handbook to guide marketers on the various methods and metrics they could use to assess different objectives and enhance ad effectiveness.

The council also appointed a new chair, Marcus Betschel, who is national head of strategy and products at Columbus. He would work alongside IAB's co-chair, Gai Le Roy, to assist the Australian digital community in identifying and refining methods to assess the impact of ads across various activities.

Betschel said: "The challenge of identifying relevant metrics of ad effectiveness is an incredibly important one. It's key to our marketplace and the future of the industry as a whole, particularly given the increased scrutiny on the value of digital advertising execution.

"The Ad Effectiveness Glossary is the council's first step to bring the market together to a common understanding. The IAB is on a mission to simplify digital; so explaining the often-confusing jargon is a necessary first step to moving towards better metrics that gauge the impact of ad investments."

Le Roy added that other councils under the IAB also would be releasing their respective glossaries over the coming month.

Whitepaper looks at China's programmatic video market

Amnet has partnered with Chinese third-party digital ad-tracking vendor, AdMaster, to introduce a whitepaper on China's programmatic video market.

The Dentsu Aegis Network's programmatic unit said the document aimed to highlight programmatic video adoption trends among local publishers and advertisers. The whitepaper also explored "innovative models and new opportunities" in programmatic video to improve campaign performance and increase value.

It noted that 2017 was seeing growing adoption of programmatic video among China's leading brands and premium publishers, with the aim to extend their reach and improve user engagement.

"Meanwhile, China's programmatic video industry is evolving faster than ever with game-changing programmatic technologies and shifting models", the companies said, adding that the whitepaper was produced based on more than 2,499 programmatic video campaigns recorded in AdMaster's database last year and more than 100 billion impression data analysed by Amnet.

The document, amongst others, provided an overview of China's video programmatic market, analysis of common programmatic video-buying models in the country, as well as programmatic strategies across different platforms and verticals.

Amnet's China managing director Lawrence Wan said: "In this whitepaper, we touch on the main challenges and opportunities in China's programmatic video industry … [and lead] the discussion on how to better leverage emerging trends and best practices in programmatic video that provides our advertisers with an edge in their video planning and buying strategy."

Publicis acquires AU agency

Publicis Communications says it has purchased Australian PR company The Herd Agency and will relaunch the brand as part of MSL.

The move also marks the introduction of MSL in the Australian market, it noted, adding that the local agency would be renamed Herd MSL.

It said the merger would provide Publicis' clientele access to a wider service portfolio, which would include integrated campaigns, social media and content marketing, and stakeholder relations.

Founded in 1996, The Herd Agency comprised 55 employees, including founder Jamie Verco, CEO Vanessa Liell, and agency leads Katarina Farrell, Stuart Wragg, and Lewis Shields, who will remain part of the rebranded agency.

Publicis Communications' ANZ CEO Michael Rebelo said: "The acquisition enables us to offer fully integrated public relations services to our clients for the first time. It couldn't be timelier to expand our capabilities and [local talent base]."

Brightcove expands consulting business to ANZ

The online video platform has launched its consulting business, Brightcove Global Services, in Australia and New Zealand (ANZ), offering a range of services that include integration, advisory, migration, and re-encoding.

It also appointed James Cooper as director of global solutions for the local outfit, luring the executive from Bank of America, where he was responsible for the bank's integration with Birghtcove.

Cooper said: "The Global Services team in the US has been drawing on deep, collective digital media expertise to tackle some of the most complex issues in the industry and address market demand for more customisation.

"The opportunity to bring this degree of insight and personalisation to ANZ means we can now better balance all our customers' needs and ensure the most successful implementations locally through a highly curated approach", he added.

Huang Xinyu, SVP & Greater China MD, comScore

comScore brings Extended Video reporting to China

The media analytics firm has launched its Extended Video reporting service in the Chinese market, offering "programme-level insights" on online video consumption.

It added that the service would provide granular data on content viewed, including who was watching the content and viewer engagement on a weekly and daily basis.

comScore's senior vice president and Greater China managing director, Huang Xinyu, said: "With the explosive growth of online video programmes in China, it is critical for content owners, publishers, advertisers, and agencies to have an even deeper understanding of their audiences and the marketplace.

"Our offering provides granular data and insights into online video consumption at the programme-level to help [facilitate] better content and advertising decisions", Huang said.