thePlatform Adds More Partners to its thePlatform Framework Program

--Secures New Deal with the Associated Press
Comcast-owned white-label broadband video publishing company, thePlatform--which earlier this year launched a partner program, called thePlatform Framework, which it bills as the "industry's largest collection of integrated partners for serving the professional online video market" (note: program members include companies providing ad campaign management systems, ad sales networks, content delivery networks, content protection, media formats, transcoding engines, payment processors, syndication outlets and video search--for more on the program, see [itvt] Issue 7.77 Part 2b)--says that it has added six advertising partners to the program:

• 24/7 Real Media (offers ad-serving, targeting, tracking, analytics, and search marketing technologies).
• Microsoft's AdManager (billed as allowing broadband video publishers to easily obtain campaign data and make optimization updates in real time, discover trends, accurately forecast inventory and precisely target audiences; and as offering custom statistical dashboards, custom reporting capabilities and unique visitor statistics).
• DoubleClick In-Stream (billed as enabling video content owners to dynamically insert ads into video playlists and measure ad viewing behavior; the company's companion DART solution, which is also part of thePlatform Framework, is billed as providing trafficking, targeting, forecasting and reporting on video advertising).
• Tremor Media (an online video advertising network that offers a platform called Acudeo; the latter is billed as allowing publishers to schedule and dynamically deliver in-stream video and overlay ads from multiple sources through their existing ad server).
• Kiptronic (offers a Media Service Platform which is billed as dynamically inserting video and audio ads into digital media for consumption on any device and application, including Web pages, iPhones, iPods, Facebook widgets, Adobe Media Player, Internet-connected TV's, smartphones and PC's; as integrated with leading CDN's; and as compatible with various ad-serving platforms including DoubleClick's DART for Publishers and Microsoft's AdManager).
• LiveRail (offers a range of technologies for managing, targeting, optimizing and tracking online video advertising; its solutions are billed as offering native support for such video ad formats as pre-rolls and overlays, and as providing video-centric reporting, automated video asset encoding, and tag-based targeting that works directly with thePlatform's own content-tagging system).

The new partners join a line-up of high-profile companies in the broadband video advertising and monetization space that are already members of the program: Adap.tv, BlackArrow, DoubleClick (DART), Lightningcast, Panache, PayPal, ScanScout, and SpotXchange. According to thePlatform, the addition of the six new partners means that it now offers the industry's largest set of advertising capabilities for broadband video. "Media companies are demanding more choices and enhanced capabilities to support their advertising efforts in online video," thePlaform CEO, Ian Blaine, said in a prepared statement. "As part of the open, video management system that we provide, customers want the ability to work with the best-in-class solutions providers in a seamless way. With the addition of leading solutions like 24/7 Real Media, Microsoft's AdManager, DoubleClick In-Stream, Tremor Media, Kiptronic, and LiveRail, we now offer the largest set of advertising choices for online video in order to meet the diverse needs of media companies of all sizes."

In other thePlatform news: The company has been tapped by the Associated Press (AP) to build what it describes as a "more flexible, enhanced" version of the latter's Online Video Network (OVN), replacing the Microsoft platform currently used by the AP. The OVN distributes the AP's video content (consisting of in-depth reports, specifically designed for viewing on the Internet) to around 2,100 newspaper, broadcast and other media Web sites throughout the US. According to thePlatform, the technology platform it is providing the AP will be rolled out by December, and will provide AP affiliates with greater ability to showcase their own news video, as well as allowing them to offer the AP's video in higher quality. It will for the first time make available to AP affiliates an embeddable video player for video destination pages. "For perspective, this is easily one of the largest online video initiatives to occur in 2008," thePlatform's Ian Blaine said in a prepared statement. "In many ways, it's like launching thousands of individual video sites at the same time, and we're very proud to help the AP provide broader video coverage to millions of viewers." Added Jane Seagrave, the AP's SVP of global product development: "The new version of the network will make it easier for our affiliates to incorporate compelling news video on their Web sites. As video becomes the storytelling medium of choice on the Internet, we're improving the content as well as the technical environment."