Mediabrands Announces Strategic Partnership With Navic

Initiative, Universal McCann, MAGNA and IPG’s Emerging Media Labto Deliver Clients Real-Time Optimization of TV Ads; Navic’s Advanced Technology Combines Power of Television With Accuracy of Web.

NEW YORK and WALTHAM, Mass.-Initiative, Universal McCann, MAGNA and IPG’s Emerging Media Lab — four companies among the newly formalized Mediabrands group — today announced that they have entered into a strategic partnership with Navic Networks, the Microsoft Corp.-owned solutions provider with innovative technology offerings that are transforming the world of television advertising.

Under the terms of the agreement, the media agencies and their respective clients will have access to a variety of Navic’s closed-loop solutions and product offerings, including its national media service, Admira, to help clients optimize their advertising campaigns more effectively than ever before.

“We are seeking new technologies to deliver unparalleled accountability to clients, and aligning with Navic was a natural fit,” said Nick Brien, CEO of Mediabrands. “By combining the power of television with the accountability of the Web, we’re able to offer our world-class clients cutting-edge technology to help them maximize the ROI for their advertising dollars.”

“Navic is fully committed to offering innovative technologies that provide one of the most effective and accurate metrics available,” said Chet Kanojia, CEO of Navic Networks. “The industry has come a long way from defining keywords for targeted clicks, and we’re excited to align with forward-thinking companies that make bold moves and, like Navic, are on the cusp of new trends and technologies.”

Using Admira’s suite of advanced planning tools, audience behavior data and real-time viewership reporting, the agencies and their clients will be able to define their spot placement criteria and locate available spots during programming that matches the criteria most optimally, providing exceptionally high target reach efficiency within the advertiser’s budget.

Initiative, Universal McCann, MAGNA and the Emerging Media Lab have agreed to pledge significant financial and human resources to inventory presently accessed through Navic’s Admira platform, as well as for future deployments.