Clear Channel International debuts programmatic offering
Clear Channel International has launched what it claims to be the first out-of-home programmatic buying tool now available in Europe, with brands including Deliveroo and Mercedez-Benz on board at launch.
Clear Channel International unveils programmatic solution
The solution is currently live in Belgium with advertisers including Mercedes-Benz, Beobank and Deliveroo and will be further rolled out to the UK in March, when advertisers will be able to buy ad space on Clear Channel UK’s digital out-of-home (DOOH) estate, Storm.
This will be further followed by ad space on its digital retail portfolio across shopping malls and supermarkets, as well as its digital roadside network Adshel Live.
It will eventually include the automated buying of non-digital panels, but initial focus is on DOOH inventory to give advertisers the ability to alter and deliver campaigns in real-time.
Laurence Henuzet, digital trading manager at ZenithOptimedia, the media buyer for Mercedes-Benz, commented: “I’m delighted to be able to test this one-to-many medium which pairs geographic proximity with consumer interests and a strong visual impact."
William Eccleshare, chairman and chief executive of Clear Channel International, said: “Programmatic buying has revolutionised the buying process in many key media sectors and we believe it will do the same for out-of-home. Anything that makes our fabulous product easier to buy is to be wholeheartedly welcomed. We are making our media simpler to plan, buy, optimise and measure through familiar buying technologies offering data-fueled audience-based solutions in real time.
“The launch of our programmatic buying solution represents a pivotal moment not just for Clear Channel International, but in the evolution of out-of-home, which has truly completed its transformation into a 21st Century digital media.”
The launch of the Clear Channel offering means advertisers can now access and buy audience-based packages across its DOOH using programmatic platforms including Adform, plus a proprietary Clear Channel offering.
As part of the solution, richer data sets will be available to advertisers trading programmatically, to allow them to target, plan and optimise campaigns before, during or after they are live.
There are also plans to release Clear Channel inventory to bidded marketplaces, and enable media buyers to layer on their own audience data to the targeting process.
Stefan Lameire, chief customer and revenue officer, Clear Channel International, said today’s announcement is "just the beginning" of its programmatic journey, with the company additionally highlighting how it scrapped 800 roadside billboards in the UK to focus on digital investment.
"Our vision is for one technical programmatic platform which can be shaped and adjusted by market, to suit the specific local buying needs of our customers," he added.
Programmatic out-of-home was first trialled by Xaxis in 2013. It made its UK debut in 2015 as part of a Rubicon Project and Bitposter partnership, which saw the OOH specialist offer 98% of the UK’s outdoor inventory to advertisers (accounting for over 300,000 paper and digital sites).