New OpenAP Initiative Seeks Standardized Attribution

Nine major US broadcasters and publishers have announced a new initiative in partnership with technology company OpenAP, promising advertisers a standardized way to connect first party outcome data to campaign exposure data across linear and streaming TV.

OpenAP was set up as a consortium in 2017 by broadcasters Fox Networks, Turner and Viacom, with the aim of developing a cross-media audience platform industry standard. Discovery took a stake in the venture five years later, and the company is a co-sponsor of the measurement JIC ('joint industry committee') established in January 2023.

The nine companies joining OpenAP in the new venture are A+E Global Media, AMC Global Media, FOX, Hallmark Media, NBCUniversal, Paramount, Scripps Networks, TelevisaUnivision and Warner Bros. Discovery. The partners plan an initial pilot phase, working with select advertisers, agencies and attribution providers, to demonstrate the benefits of a unified approach, with initial results expected to be shared over the next year.

In the longer-term, OpenAP aims to introduce two new capabilities: a Unified Conversion API for Linear TV and Streaming Video, including a 'more interoperable' set of conversion signals across premium linear and streaming environments; and new campaign workflows to improve performance, enabling buyers to commit new dollars across publishers and platforms - including, in future, incorporating agentic workflow interaction and automated optimization of video investment. According to the firm, these capabilities will form an interoperable infrastructure that integrates with existing buy-side tools while establishing a consistent framework for attribution, optimization and performance measurement across premium video.

According to OpenAP CEO David Levy (pictured): 'Premium video needs its own intelligent operating layer to better compete with walled gardens. This cross-publisher effort will unify how outcome data flows into premium TV through a standardized integration point connecting advertiser conversion data with publisher exposure data. By simplifying how outcomes are measured and activated across publishers, we can help advertisers see performance more easily, enable agencies to scale their audience strategies, and give publishers a stronger framework to grow investment without adding operational friction.'

Web site: www.openap.tv .