Consortium of leading web publishers will consult on next generation advertising platform

Microsoft Corporation announced the creation of the Publisher Leadership Council, a partnership with a select group of leading web publishers who will consult on the development of Microsoft PubCenter, its next generation advertising platform for digital media publishers.

The Publisher Leadership Council is comprised of digital media executives and discipline-leading practitioners, including charter members from Dow Jones Online, IAC, The New York Times Company, Time Inc., and Viacom. This group will provide first-hand perspectives and market-leading insights to inform PubCenter features and functionality, including enhanced targeting, measurement and reporting functionality. Partner company executives will form a steering committee, focused on framing the key challenges and opportunities facing the digital media industry-and the role of technology in solving them. To gain greater insights and perspectives, representatives will have the unique opportunity to inform platform design and feature prioritization.

"Digital media publishers have diverse needs and face many challenges," said Scott Howe, corporate vice president of the Advertiser & Publisher Solutions (APS) group at Microsoft, the platform and monetization engine for Microsoft Advertising. "This initiative is validation of our commitment to partnering with the industry to meet those challenges together. Some key features of PubCenter are still on the whiteboard, and we're giving our partners a pen."

PubCenter is being built on the existing adCenter Publisher architecture that is currently in beta in the U.S. and will include the convergence of technologies and tools provided by the former Atlas and Rapt solutions, as well as a self-serve offering. The new platform will provide innovative forecasting and order management solutions, advanced analytics tools, and enhanced targeting functionality to ensure all digital media publishers have access to the tools and technology they require to provide valuable and relevant ad content to their advertising partners.

"As an industry, we're forced to rely on many disjointed tools and systems, and the quality of the data we receive can suffer as a result," said Nada Stirratt, executive vice president of Digital Advertising at MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom. "Data is critical to managing, measuring, and meeting the needs of our advertisers and audience, and enhancing the overall value we deliver. By collaborating with Microsoft, we're in a strong position to help address these needs and, together, chart the industry's future."