From Mark Mitchell, VP of Business Development, Xandr 

As the ad industry is approaching its first upfronts with no officially accredited measurement solution, what do you advise clients use from a measurement perspective?

The TV industry is evolving from a single to multi-currency marketplace.  Throughout the year, we’ve seen indications of a growing appetite for new TV measurement solutions as agencies and programmers announced deals to test new currencies. As the marketplace becomes more competitive and dynamic, activating new solutions needs to be easier and more efficient.  Xandr offers technology solutions that simplify data-driven linear buying and selling.  We've introduced a standardized framework that will enable buyers and sellers to activate data-driven linear campaigns with their currency of choice.

While Nielsen data will remain the currency of record for the majority of this year’s upfront negotiations, all of the major media companies are running their own tests with their own preferred vendors. How do you think this will impact the industry?

There are all sorts of innovative data solutions - search engagement, attention data, etc. in-market, and a willingness from buyers and sellers to experiment with new currencies. A more competitive market that offers more choice to the customer is a better market. More competition will initiate innovation and change, and perhaps force the industry to rethink how we measure TV.

What technology innovations are impacting the TV upfronts most this year and how?

I think what we’ll see is the continued impact of innovations in audience targeting, data, and technology that have catapulted TV advertising into the digital age and enabled more precise targeting and measurement against business outcomes. This year, we can expect advertisers to continue to ditch the demos and make the shift to more targeted strategies like data-driven linear that deliver improved reach and ROI for brands.