Scott Ferber, Chairman and CEO, Videology

2012 promises to be a pivotal year for video advertising. It’s an exciting year for our company, as we launch our new Videology brand and roll out a host of new products for agencies, advertisers and publishers. And it’s an exciting year for the industry, as increased media demand in 2012 promises to open new opportunities for video as advertisers seek new solutions and sources of inventory to meet their marketing goals.

I believe 2012 will be the year that video advertising as an industry gets our focus clear. Like any industry experiencing such burgeoning growth, the past few years were a bit chaotic for ad tech companies and our partners alike, as we all struggled to find our way in a new space. Since no one was sure exactly how the ecosystem would ultimately evolve, tech companies and networks alike all wanted to protect their future share of market by tapping into multiple segments of the demand chain. Exchanges became platforms, platforms became networks, networks become DSPs. Unfortunately, all of this shape shifting led to confusion in the marketplace—and confusion isn’t good for anybody. As the video ecosystem evolves and firms, it is time to focus once again on two key tenants of all successful technological innovation: Simplify and Solve.

That’s what we’re doing under our consolidated Videology brand. By focusing our business on being the the best ad decisioning and performance measurement platform in the industry for both buyers and publishers, we are trying to provide a common solution for the entire video advertising ecosystem, There is currently a communications disconnect between digital video buyers and sellers. By providing a common platform solution, agencies and publishers can focus their attention on the bigger picture—providing the best ROI-focused, audience-based solutions for advertisers. As the video ecosystem evolves, the needs of the industry are changing. Our clients—both agencies and publishers—are working in different ways. It’s our job to offer the technology that allows them to work the way they want and differentiate themselves within the marketplace. The one-size-fits-all model doesn’t work anymore. By offering our clients a level of control, customization and transparency that was not previously possible under the pure network model, we are opening the door to the tremendous opportunity that 2012 will almost certainly present.