Released on = January 20, 2006, 3:07 am

Press Release Author = Katy Howell

Industry = Management

Press Release Summary = Members of the Association of Online Publishers (AOP) and
the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) have agreed an industry policy for charging
where there is late delivery of online advertising creative

Press Release Body =

Following a period of consultation with media owners and agencies, members of the
Association of Online Publishers (AOP) and the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB)
have agreed an industry policy for charging where there is late delivery of online
advertising creative, effective from 1 April 2006.

Between now and April, a test period will see online publishers tracking the
potential impact of charges, and communicating this back to media and creative
agencies.

Managing online inventory is complex and with some websites now reaching sell-out it
is important that creative is received and tested in time in order to deliver
campaigns in full.

Creative, correct to publishers' specifications, should be delivered to the media
owner within the standard IAB guidelines of three to five working days depending on
format or to publisher specific guidelines. The industry bodies have agreed that
charges will be made for creative received after 12.00 on the day before the
campaign start date.

Charges will be at the publisher's discretion and could take the form of:
· Fixed charge
and/or
· Full cost of campaign invoiced with impressions pro rated down for each day
creative is not live

Online publishers continue to strive to provide the best client service and it is
hoped that these guidelines will provide the foundation for efficient and effective
practices.

Alexandra White, director of AOP, said: "Online publishers will of course do their
utmost to get campaigns live for their clients, but it's just not practical for
creative to be delivered at the eleventh hour - or in many cases, well after the
campaign was due to launch. These guidelines are intended to provide some clarity
and consistency for the industry and should lead to a more efficient workflow.\"

Guy Phillipson, chief executive of the IAB, said: "As online becomes a £1 billion
medium, tougher guidelines are needed in order for us to maintain an equal standing
with traditional media. It is therefore essential we crack down on the late delivery
of creative, which has been an issue within the industry for some time. The IAB
fully supports this joint initiative with the AOP, which will serve to streamline
work practices and ensure revenues for our media owner members."

John Owen, chairman of the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising's Digital
Marketing Group (DMG), said: "We welcome this initiative and the sensible manner in
which it is being introduced. As online becomes more and more important as an
advertising medium, it needs to embrace the best practice procedures that have been
tried and tested by other channels."
.ends/
About AOP
The UK Association of Online Publishers (AOP) is an industry body representing
online publishing companies that create original, branded, quality content. AOP
champions the interests of approximately 160 publishing companies from diverse
backgrounds including newspaper and magazine publishing, TV and radio broadcasting,
and pure online media. Together they publish around 1,150 products and attract more
than five billion page impressions per month.

AOP presents a unified voice to industry and Government, specifically to address
issues and concerns relating to all areas of online publishing. AOP publishes
original research, hosts forums, conferences and events, covering a range of topics
from paid-for-content, subscription models and data protection, through to
copyright, content management, new technologies and audience measurement.

Last year AOP produced the highly acclaimed research 'Reaching the Online Elite' and
every year it delivers the annual member benchmarking study, the 'AOP Census'. This
year AOP will add to its original research with two new studies.

The AOP autumn Online Publishing Conference & Awards is its annual industry event.
It attracts the biggest names in online publishing to discuss the challenges and
opportunities facing the industry and celebrate outstanding achievement. The 2005
event will be held on 7 October at the London Hilton, Park Lane.

Members include Associated New Media, BBC, BSkyB, Capital Radio Group, CNET
Networks, Channel 4, Dennis Interactive, The Economist Group, Emap, FT.com, Future
Publishing, Guardian Unlimited, Haymarket Publishing, Independent Digital, IPC
Media, ITV Online, News International, Reed Business Information, Telegraph Group
Limited and Which?. In addition, PPAi (Periodical Publishers Association
Interactive) retains a corporate seat on AOP board: representing the interests of
magazine publishers online. www.ukaop.org.uk

About the IAB
The Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) is the trade association for online
advertising. With over 200 members, it\'s run for the leading media owners and
agencies in the UK internet industry. Online is an exciting and fast-growing medium
and our job at the IAB is to work with members to ensure marketers can identify the
best role for online, helping them engage their customers and build their brands.
Through the dissemination of research and the organisation of regular events, we aim
to put online on the agenda of every marketer in the UK, acting as an authoritative
and objective source for all internet advertising issues.

Contact:

Katy Howell
immediate future Ltd.
0845 408 2031


Web Site = http://www.immediatefuture.co.uk

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