As Advertising Week unfolds, Omnicom Media Group (OMG) is actively working to establish transparency and standards in areas of the advertising industry that are currently unclear. One of their primary efforts is focused on the ad auction process, a critical aspect of media investment, estimated at $600 billion globally.
OMG is collaborating with the Media Rating Council’s Auction Standards Working Group, led by Ben Hovaness, chief media officer for OMD. This group aims to standardize practices related to media auctions, including measurement, reporting, and overall transparency.
The Auction Standards Working Group, formed in May and officially launched in August, includes around 70 industry participants, ranging from platforms and marketers to sellers and auctioneers. The group’s formation marks a rare instance of cross-industry cooperation, involving key organizations such as ANA, 4As, WFA, MRC, and IAB Tech Lab.
One of its main goals is to standardize the auction process, which is currently opaque and often confusing for buyers. The auction process is complicated because different firms use different methods, leaving advertisers unsure about how winners are determined, how prices are set, and how much is paid for winning bids.
Hovaness emphasized that the first step in the effort was to gain the support of industry organizations, a move that broadened participation significantly. Nearly 80% of auction transactions currently occur through large “walled gardens” such as Facebook and Google, with other types of programmatic stakeholders also involved.
Omnicom Media Group Leads Push for Transparency in Digital Ad Auctions with Industry-Wide Initiative
This wide participation from across the industry has been a key factor in driving the initiative forward. The next step for the group is to distribute a questionnaire to 25 auction firms, gathering detailed information on their processes. This data will be instrumental in crafting the final standards that will govern the industry’s expectations for how auctions should operate.
The goal of these efforts is to bring more visibility and integrity to the digital ad marketplace. With more transparent auction practices, stakeholders can have more confidence in their buying strategies, thus benefiting all parties involved.
Katherine Freeley, head of the Media Center of Excellence at Boehringer-Ingelheim, highlighted that transparency would strengthen the digital ad marketplace, ultimately benefiting both buyers and sellers.
Jamie Power, SVP of addressable sales at Disney Advertising, also voiced support for the initiative, recognizing its importance in providing real-time insights and transparency to improve auction-based media purchasing decisions.
In addition to the Auction Standards Working Group, Omnicom Media Group has its Council on Accountability and Standards in Advertising (CASA), which has been working for several years to establish standards across the digital investment spectrum. CASA’s influence is now being extended to the auction space, marking a significant shift in how these practices are addressed industry-wide.
According to Ron Pinelli, MRC’s SVP of digital research and standards, consistent disclosure and reporting standards are essential for auction participants. This effort seeks to create a framework for auditing and compliance, ensuring that auction operators meet industry-accepted standards, and fostering greater transparency across the advertising ecosystem.
