Tag: Finecast

Manila, Philippines – WPP’s media investment arm GroupM has officially launched its addressable TV solution, Finecast, in the Philippines. This year, Finecast will be introducing new innovative solutions, technology, and enhanced viewing experience for TV stakeholders, including audiences, advertisers, and brands.

The launch of Finecast, which took place at the Globe Auditorium in Bonifacio Global City in Manila on February 2, will add to the market’s addressable TV capabilities and provide a platform for entrepreneurs and marketers to network, share ideas, and learn from leaders on how to effectively promote ads as well as drive growth in a digital-focused era.

Puneet Arora, CEO of GroupM Philippines and Singapore, said, “We are thrilled to launch Finecast in the Philippines, one of the largest markets in this space, and to see the best in the industry come together to celebrate our official launch.”

Kathryn Domingo, lead at Finecast Philippines, shared that they aim to offer a one-stop-shop access to the entire addressable TV system, coordinating the distribution and frequency across all broadcasters and screens to reach relevant audiences no matter where they are viewing.

“Finecast will keep pushing the boundaries of TV innovation and is committed to leading the transformation of the industry. We are incredibly excited and proud to bring an addressable TV solution to the market for our clients,” she added.

During the launch event, some of the discussions put forth include the impact of the pandemic to the shift of a digital society, as well as the successful integration of addressable TV in the industry’s future.

Brett Poole, CEO for APAC at Finecast, also commented that as the media ecosystem continues to evolve, TV ads continue to wield the greatest influence in generating the most positive brand impressions.

“Historically, brands in Southeast Asia that have harnessed the power of storytelling through TV – either through a single advertisement or through a series of stories over a period of time – have enjoyed high performance and profitable gains. We look forward to continue helping brands in the Philippines unlock new and exciting opportunities to engage with their target audience and achieve sustainable growth,” Poole added.

Sydney, Australia – Finecast, GroupM’s addressable TV business, has partnered with Australian broadcaster Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) to make connected TV (CTV) advertising better, and help advertisers reach bigger audiences through BVOD campaigns.

The partnership, which is done also with Xandr, will utilise the strength of ‘Header Bidding’ technology on CTV campaigns, representing a positive shift in the access capabilities for addressable TV, whilst maintaining the benefits of buying flexibility.

The ‘Header Bidding’ technology has long been a part of the digital media ecosystem creating a fairer and more competitive programmatic marketplace for publishers. This provides increased access to inventory for buyers and greater transparency and visibility of available inventory for marketers. By allowing advance bidding on inventory from multiple ad exchanges simultaneously, header bidding reduces the inefficiencies of a sequential waterfall approach.

John Miskelly, APAC investment director at GroupM, said, “This is an exciting development in the connected TV/OTT video space where we can harness the agility and addressability of programmatic and have access to the best inventory. The broadcasters are doing a great job as TV transforms, and SBS and Finecast are demonstrating true best practice for access and innovation in the CTV ecosystem.”

Meanwhile, Lee Callagher, national digital operations and technology manager at SBS, commented, “Being able to prioritise both direct and programmatic demand whilst maintaining our premium ad experience is important for SBS’ future commercial strategy. Working with Finecast to successfully bring ‘Header Bidding’ to connected TV enables greater scale and reach for advertisers in BVOD.”

Singapore – As part of the company’s stride to achieve full potential of digital media transformation, WPP’s media investment group GroupM has expanded the role of Arshan Saha, CEO for APAC at programmatic Xaxis, to the new role of APAC CEO for Xaxis & Specialty Businesses.

In his newest role, he will be handling as well the regional businesses of GroupM’s data-driven specialty businesses including programmatic offering Xaxis, influencer marketing service INCA, addressable TV offering Finecast, addressable out-of-home (OOH) offering Sightline, and data and technology consultancy practice Acceleration.

The consolidation of leadership for all data-driven specialty businesses for APAC will ensure GroupM’s continued future ready innovation and growth. Saha brings his experience in growing and scaling Xaxis across the region to further strengthen GroupM’s data and technology suite of products.

Furthermore, GroupM believes that the expanded role lines well with the current state of digital media, which at the moment is fast-evolving and adoption is accelerating, resulting in continued fragmentation across channels and audiences. They add that innovation is key to leveraging this opportunity, and this has taken the form of specialty businesses across various addressable channels.

“My journey at Xaxis has provided me with the perfect platform to succeed in this role. I am excited to embark on this new challenge, leading a high-growth portfolio of specialty businesses for GroupM in channels that are of high demand from our clients. This consolidation will empower our clients to make media work harder for them, while allowing them to easily access GroupM’s digital expertise as a single unit,” Saha said, regarding the expanded role.

Meanwhile, Ashutosh Srivastava, APAC CEO at GroupM, commented, “As part of GroupM’s overall global strategy for growth, we have been investing in launching and growing several data-driven specialty businesses in the region. Apart from Xaxis, we have fast-growing businesses in INCA and Finecast, and are on the verge of launching addressable OOH and Data & Tech consulting.” 

He added, “Arshan has shown great product and commercial acumen in growing Xaxis, and we are confident of his success in scaling our performance and digital product offerings across Asia-Pacific.”