Tru Optik, Experian Team Up on OTT Measurement

Streaming media data company Tru Optik and Experian Marketing Services have teamed up to offer a new OTT tracking service, one that promises to provide real-time, multiscreen data for OTT programming and viewer ad exposure.

Stamford, Conn.-based Tru Optik will use Experian’s ConsumerView marketing database to offer its clients data on OTT ad exposure — segmented by lifestyle, demographics and purchases — with the hopes of offering a more comprehensive look at the habits of OTT consumers.

“If you can’t fully measure it, you can’t fully monetize it,” Tru Optik CEO Andre Swanston said in a statement. “Tru Optik’s technology and first-party data combined with Experian’s data will enable media companies and advertisers to understand and value audiences for OTT content.

“In other words, it will provide the currency that is necessary to truly open not only the OTT ad market, but also provide better insight as to the value of product placement and licensing of content to subscription video services like Netflix and Amazon."

He added that there’s a disconnect between OTT viewership and ad dollars today because of unreliable consumer data measurement schemes, including using cookies and device-specific software development kits. The partnership with Experian Marketing Services will give Tru Optik a way around that, he said, by pulling in “anonymous, aggregated behavior and profile information … across all digital devices belonging to the same individuals or households.”

“Tru Optik is at the forefront of empowering media companies and brands to harness the power of [Internet-connect TV],” said Kevin Dean, president and GM of targeting for Experian Marketing Services. “By partnering with Experian they are adding a trusted and reliable source of audience and consumer data to enhance their measurement and segmentation ability.”