(R)Evolution in Programmatic Advertising: New ‘Media Manager’ from Virtual Minds makes classic, linear advertising media programmatically bookable and controllable for the first time

Virtual Minds launches a new platform generation for its media technologies: With its new ‘Media Manager’, Europe’s leading technology provider for programmatic advertising will now offer an innovative media solution that for the first time makes classic, linear advertising media not only bookable but also controllable according to programmatic decision logics. Virtual Minds is thereby setting new standards in the digital transformation of media marketing and is reaffirming its technological leadership in the programmatic omnichannel segment.

82 per cent of the digital advertising volume is already booked and played out programmatically (source: Magna Global, June 2021). This means that automated, data-based media management has now established itself as the standard mode in the digital sector – with consequences for the analogue media sector: In addition to an advertising experience of users that is often inconsistent across the different media spheres when it comes to advertising relevance and pressure, intelligent storytelling, etc., the key challenges include the increasing demands of all market sides – advertisers, agencies and publishers/ marketers – with regard to planning experience and control options, innovative media products, high-quality budget and yield optimisation as well as cross-media synergy effects.

Virtual Minds ‘Media Manager’ – linear becomes programmatic

The ‘Media Manager’, jointly designed and developed by the Virtual Minds programmatic specialists Adition Technologies (Adserver and Active Agent DSP), The Adex (DMP) and Yieldlab (SSP), is designed in the first expansion stage for programmatic advertising marketing of typical broadcast media (One-to-Many) such as TV, radio and cinema. The platform, which can be seamlessly integrated into existing media technology system landscapes, enables the provision as well as real-time playout of classic, linear inventories using automated optimisation logics such as event-based, real-time exclusion of advertising campaigns. In addition to the inventory of the entire broadcaster programme (allocation of commercials at commercial break level), the solution also assumes responsibility for revenue-orientated optimisation of the commercial break composition. The holistic yield optimisation built into the platform allows for parallel processing of classic I/O and programmatic campaigns, which can initially be traded via Programmatic Guaranteed Deals, and in the future also by means of auctions and private marketplaces. The system processes and delivers relevant target group and marketing key figures such as the total number of viewers or listeners and their target group breakdown for planning. It then provides the most important tracking data for managing campaigns in real time via the dashboard. This means, for example, that powerful pacing can be used to give campaigns the necessary boost at any time through precisely adjustable over-delivery. At any given time, the publishers maintain complete control of all processes throughout.

‘With the new “Media Manager”, we are opening up the great potential and efficiency benefits of programmatic marketing to classic linear broadcast media while retaining their existing media and business models,’ explains Ralf Hammerath, Managing Director of Virtual Minds. ‘Instead of retooling media and control logics poorly and one-to-one in technical terms, we are pursuing a true “one-to-many” first approach that closes the media control gap between linear and digital channels and, by enabling convergent media products, strengthens classical media and their marketers in generic competition. In the coming months and years, we will continuously expand Virtual Minds’ “Media Manager” alongside the currently existing Virtual Minds adtech platforms and solutions in terms of technology and solutions to become one of the leading holistic media management platforms in the programmatic sector and want to give programmatic advertising new impetus for innovation and growth.’