JICWEBS and TAG Align Operations

Cross-industry standards bodies in the UK and US have agreed to align many of their key initiatives to tackle major issues facing digital advertising.

The organisations say the UK's Joint Industry Committee for Web Standards (JICWEBS) will continue to drive brand safety efforts in the UK while the US-based Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG) will take the long-term lead on fighting fraud, malware, and piracy. TAG will endorse the JICWEBS Digital Trading Standards Group (DTSG) Brand Safety initiative for companies active in the UK market.

Specifically, JICWEBS will offer TAG Registration in the UK market and introduce TAG's Certified Against Malware and Certified Against Piracy initiatives into the UK; while its existing anti-fraud initiatives will be merged into TAG's Certified Against Fruad programme by the end of 2018. The two bodies' brand safety initiatives will be aligned by 2019, with TAG in the meantime endorsing and promoting the JICWEBS version to all existing and future members trading or seeking to trade in the UK.

JICWEBS Chair Richard Foan (pictured) says it 'makes sense to create a consistent approach across the UK and US, which is what many from both the buy and sell side want. Initially, the partnership will offer a practical way for companies operating in the UK market to buy and benefit from both TAG's and JICWEBS' products, with the ultimate aim to fuse the best bits from both approaches to create a 'super' programme that maximises brand safety and minimises fraud'.

Mike Zaneis, President and CEO of TAG, says: 'By reducing redundancy and harmonising the existing efforts, TAG and JICWEBS will be able to expand their efforts, increase adoption, and further protect the digital supply chain worldwide'.

Web sites are at www.jicwebs.org and www.tagtoday.net .

All articles 2006-23 written and edited by Mel Crowther and/or Nick Thomas, 2024- by Nick Thomas, unless otherwise stated.