British advertisers launch digital viewability standard

Over 450 senior professional from the UK advertising and media industry gathered in London for the ISBA Annual Conference, organised by the Incorporated Society of British Advertisers.

Under the theme “The Age of Accountability”, the conference tackled accountability in the digital ecosystem, the role of advertising in reflecting or changing society’s attitudes and accountability and the need for alignment in the relationships between client and agency.



During the conference, ISBA Director General Phil Smith announced that the association was adopting a new viewability standard calling for advertisers to be given the facility to buy digital display at 100% in view, with the current Media Rating Council (MRC) guideline being 50% in view.

Commenting on the announcement, Steve Chester, Director of Media at ISBA said: “We are very pleased to have got to this point with viewability. Raising the standard is something our members want but we also recognise the different needs of our members. This is a great example of the need for the continued development of standards across the advertising and marketing industry.”

Marc Pritchard, Chief Brand Officer at P&G gave the keynote address and looked at how the industry can transform itself and move from wasteful mass-marketing to mass one-to-one brand building fuelled by data and digital technology.

Elizabeth Fagan, Boots Marketing Director and ISBA President also called for the industry to take accountability for its role in shaping and adopting self-regulation and ensuring the quality and effectiveness of advertising.

Other speakers included Carolyn McCall DBE, CEO of ITV, Alex Mahon, CEO of Channel 4, Michele Oliver, VP Marketing at Mars, and David Wheldon, RBS CMO and WFA President.

A week before the conference, ISBA also announced the second version of their Media Services Framework created to redefine and improve relationships between advertisers and media agencies in the UK.

For more information, please visit the event website or contact ISBA.