Online looks to radio in bid to create ad-booking system

LONDON - Leading online publishers, including Yahoo!, AOL, MSN, The Guardian and Emap, have endorsed a single online booking system for the industry - a move that is expected to cut admin costs.

The group, under the guise of the Internet Advertising Bureau Leadership Council, has written to agency heads to gain support for a single online booking system that it hopes will become a mainstay of online media buying.

The Delta system is being developed by MediaTel, which claims to handle 90% of radio ad revenue through its Jet radio booking system.

In a letter seen by Media Week, the IAB Leadership Council recommends that the online industry makes the establishment of an online ad-booking system a priority.
The letter reads: “Many of the Leadership Council’s key players are keen to take a lead and ensure there is a single system in place. They recognise that agencies and publishers have much to gain from improvements in process as revenues grow and resource remains hard to recruit.

“The council’s plan includes using a single system across the whole industry and requires unity from media agencies and online media owners to be realised.
“It was firmly the council’s view that the only real universal benefits come from having one system.”

The Delta system will enable agencies to set up campaigns, share a unique reference number with publishers and create audit trails or sales reports for each campaign.

Publishers can approve insertion orders and terms and conditions through the system.
MediaTel managing director Derek Jones said the system will be ready to roll out early next year. MediaTel designed and built an online booking system for digital agency I-Level, although Delta will not be based on it, said Jones.

Bruce Daisley, digital sales director at Emap Advertising, said Jet had “substantially reduced” the number of admin staff Emap required to run radio campaigns.

The IAB Leadership Council consists of senior executives from the top 12 online publishers.

Media Week 30-Oct-07