Ciaran O'Kane
CEO
Articles by Ciaran
ExchangeWire Connect: Enabling New Business in the Lockdown Era
Never waste a crisis to affect meaningful change, they say. It’s easier said than done when an entire industry is still trying to figure out how to conduct normal business in this new reality. Zoom, Google Meet et al are a help. But let’s be honest here, there is nothing more binding from a network-building perspective, than the face-to-face meeting, or the after-work pint in the pub, or – my personal favorite – the ‘power’ breakfast. Is the virtual meeting to be [...]
Why The Vertical Ad Network Will Win The Decade
The term ‘ad network’ surfaces a lot of ill-feeling when discussed at conferences or in the trade press – its reputation has been besmirched by consistent bad behaviour over two decades. Programmatic ad tech vendors built market share in the 10s, by promising to remove ad networks from the supply chain. The irony here of course is that the majority of these ad tech vendors offer a managed service and happily accept IOs. But things are about to change for the [...]
From The Outside Looking In: 5 Ideas For Publishers in A Corona Revenue Vortex
Publishers are having a hard time monetising their inventory right now. Despite the fact that many are drowning in traffic, the corona revenue bump has yet to materialise. Aggressive coronavirus keyword blocking by brands is contributing to a dip in revenue for publishers. The irony of this situation is so thick you could almost eat it. What can a publisher do? Plead to the better nature of brand spenders? Not going to happen. No brand wants to appear against negative stories [...]
Seven Reasons To Attend ATS Stockholm
We will be hosting our first event in the Nordics in over eight years on Tuesday, 19th February. ATS Stockholm will focus on the key areas affecting the industry as we head into an uncertain decade for digital marketing. Are we pivoting from precision to predictive marketing? Is the industry ready to look beyond the cookie? And what future can digital media buyers and sellers expect. With all that in mind I have outlined seven key reasons to come this year’s [...]
We Love PIE: 20 Predictions for 2020
It is that time of year again; yes it’s prediction time. The year 2020 is going to be pivotal for digital marketing. There is a confluence of trends happening right now, that will shape the next twelve months ahead, which hasn’t been seen in over a decade. And it will have broad consequences for everyone. Below are my 20 predictions for the year ahead. 1. The PIE (programmatic-is-everything) doctrine takes hold 2020 will see a re-think of ‘programmatic’. For over a decade [...]
Likely Outcomes as We Move to A First-Party Ad Economy
It’s easy to hold negative views about the state of the market right now. The third-party infrastructure that forms the basis of the digital marketing ecosystem is slowly being dismantled by regional privacy legislation and browser ITP initiatives. We are witnessing a shift to a first-party ad economy. It’s going to be a difficult transition. From the DPA’s subjective interpretations of the GDPR, to unpredictable browser ITP moves, it is difficult to read what will happen next. In this post I will [...]
10 Wild Predictions for Europe's Big Ad Tech Week
We are just three weeks away from Europe’s ad tech week. Our ten-year anniversary of ATS London kicks off the week on 9 September. As ever, we have a serious selection of big name Madtech speakers, including Sir Martin Sorrell, Insider Inc’s Jana Meron, ITV’s Lara Izlan, Xandr’s Michael Rubenstein, as well as the best minds from agencies, publishers and brands. We are very close to selling out – so make sure you get your ticket today. ATS London is followed by [...]
In This Privacy-First Era, Ad Tech Needs to Evolve or Die
The industry is literally being held together with a thin layer of ad tech adhesive tape, namely the Chrome browser. Much of the current programmatic demand is being funnelled into Google Chrome – where cookie matching, frequency capping, retargeting and measurement is still possible. Safari has become the wasteland of programmatic buying with demand falling away. That can be seen in the disparity of eCPMs between Chrome and Safari. The industry was put on alert a few months back when it [...]
Four Ad Tech Rosé Talking Points
It’s the time of year again when the media herd heads to Cannes. Cannes has always been a weird event for ad tech. Never invited into the main tent by the event organisers for fear of backlash from the ‘creative’ types, ad tech has built its own mini fringe festival around the main event. And let’s be honest here, it’s way more fun. I am not one of those hypocrites who badmouths the festival, while still indulging myself in copious [...]
The Pivot Back to the Ad-Funded Model
It seems like every day there is a media or tech company launching a streaming service. This week was Disney’s turn. At its glitzy media launch event, Disney CEO Bob Iger and senior execs outlined the Disney+ dream. The company announced new shows and back-catalogue content that will be available on the Disney+ service. Iger also prepared the market for significant cash burn over the coming years, as the company looks to onboard 90 million customers over the next three-to-five [...]
Popular Tradertalks
Latest Posts
-
Tech Firms Cease Sharing Data with Hong Kong; Which? Uncovers Ease of Ad Fraud on Google -
Instagram Looks to Trial Reels in India; TikTok Under Investigation by US FTC and DOJ -
US Considers Banning Chinese Apps; Advocacy Groups Warn Against Google's Fitbit Purchase -
EU Reveals Plans to Curtail GAFA; India May Force E-commerce Firms to Share Source Codes -
DOJ Closes in on Google; Indian Government Bans "Threatening" Apps