Australian Radio Network inks deal with AdsWizz for programmatic

The Australian Radio Network announced that it would adopt AdsWizz technology on iHeartRadio, to offer programmatic buying to its advertisers. ARN is claiming this arrangement makes it the first Australian broadcaster to offer a targeted audio ad delivery system in market. The broadcaster is calling it “one-to-one tareted audio advertising,” and it certainly foretells more targeted messaging of ARN station streams on iHeartRadio.

“This is the first time advertisers will be able to strategically reach online listeners of our radio brands via iHeartRadio, in addition to a full content suite of podcasts, online only radio stations and hundreds of pre-curated artist, genre and specialised stations on the iHeartRadio platform,” ARN CEO Rob Atkinson said. “Leveraging specific profile characteristics and key demographic information, AdsWizz will enable ARN to deliver a superior commercial offering for clients across the iHeartRadio platform including real-time analytics to execute precise ad targeting across a range of platforms and devices and is the next step in the evolution of our overall offering.”

Ad-tech company AdsWizz first partnered with iHeartRadio in the summer of 2014, and the two companies teamed to create a private programmatic marketplace last year. These ventures are not to be confused with iHeartMedia’s involvement with Katz Expressway, a programmatic platform built and powered by tech company Jelli, which is for broadcast radio (not streaming) advertising.

The launch phase of the AdsWizz/NRA agreement will see advertising roll out across  live radio streams on iHeartRadio beginning in late September. AdsWizz’s technology will be programmatic from launch, and advertisers can access audio streams, pre-roll video, companion banners and podcasts starting next week.

“Integrating AdsWizz’s advanced audio-centric platforms and iHeartRadio‘s unique audience reach will allow the launch of advanced advertising experiences and the personalization of marketing messages tailored to the right audiences. AdsWizz programmatic solutions will also cater to the growing appetite of many agencies, eager to start buying digital audio programmatically today,” AdsWizz CEO Alexis van de Wyer said.

iHeartRadio is the most listened-to radio stream aggregator in Australia, according to Edison Research.

Anna Washenko