In this weekly segment, ExchangeWire sums up key industry updates on ad tech from around the Asia Pacific region – in this edition: Triton Digital announces acquisition of podcast powerhouse Omny Studio; MediaMath launches industry’s first contextual ad targeting solution for programmatic video; GroupM updates 2019 worldwide advertising forecast; TripleLift announces partnership with major New Zealand publisher consortium; and DoubleVerify global study: Brand safety incidents on mobile apps increase three-fold, as ad budgets shift to mobile.

Triton Digital announces acquisition of podcast powerhouse Omny Studio

Triton Digital, a global technology and services leader to the digital audio and podcast industry, has announced the acquisition of Omny Studio, the creators of the world’s most advanced podcast and on-demand audio publishing platform, which Triton has been integrated with and re-selling since 2017.

As a result of this acquisition, Triton Digital has acquired the technology, assets, and team of the Melbourne-based podcasting leader, and is now the exclusive provider of the industry’s most advanced, full-stack enterprise podcasting solution. The entire Omny Studio team, including co-founders Andrew Armstrong and Long Zheng, have joined Triton Digital.

Omny Studio is trusted by the world’s leading radio stations and podcast networks, including Cumulus Media, Entercom, Mediacorp, Southern Cross Austereo, Corus Entertainment, Mashable, Arabian Radio Network, Mamamia, and more. The addition of Omny Studio’s comprehensive CMS and hosting capabilities into Triton’s preeminent portfolio of streaming, advertising, and measurement technologies provides the world’s audio publishers with a one-stop-shop to increase their reach and revenue while simultaneously streamlining workflows.

“Omny Studio has been an exceptional partner that shares our passion for enabling traditional broadcasters and pure play podcasters to grow their audience and revenue,” said Neal Schore, CEO of Triton Digital. “We are proud to welcome Omny to the Triton family, and look forward to combining our talent and technology to expand the solution globally and continue to innovate around podcast data and analytics.”

MediaMath launches industry’s first contextual ad targeting solution for programmatic video

MediaMath, an independent programmatic company for marketers, has announced the launch of the industry’s first buy-side video contextual targeting solution for programmatic video. MediaMath is providing brands and agencies the ability to target video campaigns based on the context of each video being watched, enabling them to reach engaged audiences while viewers are watching correlated and relevant programming. Additionally, the offering empowers brands to better protect their audiences by selecting the types of content they do not want to be associated with, enhancing overall targeting, control and brand safety.

The new solution is made possible through a partnership with IRIS.TV and Telaria. IRIS.TV, the market leader in video intelligence and programming, provides deep and unique integrations with publisher content management systems (CMS) and all major video players in the industry. IRIS.TV will activate contextual data on the video inventory, while Telaria, the leading video SSP for premium media companies, will make context data from IRIS.TV available to MediaMath on behalf of the publisher.

“Publishers and advertisers can now match premium content with relevant video advertising in real-time and across multiple platforms, ensuring a better overall experience for the viewer,” said Mike Fisher, vice president, Advanced TV & Video, MediaMath. “Our new solution ensures a more engaged and valuable audience for publishers, while advertisers enjoy better targeting and control of their message.”

GroupM updates 2019 worldwide advertising forecast

GroupM, WPP’s media investment group, has released its Worldwide Media Forecast, This Year, Next Year, which predicts growth of the advertising industry across more than 60 territories through the end of 2019 and into 2020. Most notably, GroupM forecasts 3.4% growth in 2019, or 4.6% on an underlying basis (which excludes political advertising in the United States). For 2020, the report forecasts a slight acceleration on an underlying basis, with a forecast of 4.7% growth. Adding in political advertising in the United States, total global growth will be more like 6%. Globally, the US is a key driver of the industry’s ongoing expansion, but so too are China, Brazil, India and the UK Digital advertising continues to be the largest growth medium across markets.

“While the economic foundations supporting the advertising industry are somewhat fragile at this time, growth trends are holding up for now,” said Brian Wieser, global president of business intelligence, GroupM.

Notable geographic trends: The US, China, Brazil, India and UK lead the pack
Looking at significant contributors to overall global growth, the US, China, Brazil, India and the UK collectively account for well over half of growth in 2019 and 2020. China, which represents one-sixth of global advertising, expects 5.6% growth in 2020. Brazil also stands out for its reversal from a 0.9% predicted decline in 2019 to a 6.1% gain in 2020, despite mixed conditions for its overall economy. India expects double-digit growth in 2019 (14%) and 2020 (13%), making it set to surpass Australia and Canada by next year as the world’s eighth-largest ad market. As for the UK, growth of more than 6.1% this year, and 4.6% next, makes the world’s fourth-largest ad market one of the healthiest despite the uncertainties surrounding Brexit.

TripleLift announces partnership with major New Zealand publisher consortium

TripleLift, one of the world’s largest native advertising platforms, has announced its official partnership with KPEX (Kiwi Premium Ad Exchange), the publisher consortium comprising all of New Zealand's largest media brands. With this collaboration, TripleLift will enable custom-designed in-feed native ads across KPEX's premium publishers.

TripleLift is the technology company that invents, powers and scales ads that earn consumer attention. The company set the standard for respectful advertising, leveraging computer vision technology to programmatically deliver in-feed, user-friendly ads at scale. Each TripleLift native ad is custom-rendered to match the unique look and feel of its surrounding content. The in-feed native format generates 2.75x more time spent on ads and 4.18x more action taken compared to traditional digital display ads.

TripleLift serves 176 billion monthly impressions across the world’s leading publishers, including The New York Times, BBC, The Guardian, Fox News, MSN, REA Group, Domain, Mamamia, Gumtree, eBay, and more. In February, TripleLift announced the launch of its Sydney office, bringing in-feed native programmatic advertising to the Asia Pacific region for the first time. Since then, the TripleLift team has been focused on partnering with the region’s leading publishers, agencies, and DSPs to bring progressive creative ad formats to the local programmatic ecosystem.

Kevin Delie, TripleLift’s Australia & New Zealand Country Manager, said, “KPEX brings a sophisticated programmatic offering with a rare and impressive combination of brand safety, prestige content and scale. We’re thrilled to be partnering with them to bring best-in-class ad experiences to the New Zealand market.”

DoubleVerify global study: Brand safety incidents on mobile apps increase three-fold, as ad budgets shift to mobile

DoubleVerify ("DV"), a leading independent provider of marketing measurement software and analytics, has released its 2019 Global Insights Report, providing a market-by-market benchmark on the current and future state of media quality on the Internet.

The Report explores global trends in brand safety, fraud, and viewability, with a number of key findings. The new 2019 data indicate that mobile app brand safety violations have grown 194% in the last year – as users’ content consumption patterns and corresponding ad budgets increasingly shift to mobile. In addition, the number of CTV and mobile apps identified as fraudulent has risen sharply – up 120%, as fraudsters increasingly target these premium, high-growth environments.

“Brand safety, fraud and viewability continue to be top-of-mind for advertisers, and with good reason,” said Wayne Gattinella, CEO of DoubleVerify. “Headlines buzz with stories about brands appearing beside fake or objectionable content, and emerging fraud schemes. The stakes are high as advertisers rightfully demand clarity and confidence into the quality and performance of their digital investment.”