A Pairing to Ease Ad Localization and Rights Management

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Image licensing and content provider ImageSpan has partnered with Visible World, a video advertising technology and services company, creating a platform for advertisers to easily craft rights-cleared national TV, Web and print campaigns featuring local video and photography.

The deal combines ImageSpan's automated content and copyright management and licensing platform with Visible World's IntelliSpot Dashboard. ImageSpan's CurbStream system provides advertisers with on-demand access to about 7,000 on-call videographers and photographers who capture local content according to scripts predefined by the advertiser.

The clips and photos, with all usage rights immediately cleared, are uploaded via CurbStream's Web interface. Then, using Visible World's IntelliSpot Dashboard, advertisers can create, customize, deliver and monitor professional-appearing spots that align with national campaigns but include localized video and photography.

The technology eliminates the costly and time-consuming negotiations required to secure localized content and rights clearances, said ImageSpan chairman and CEO Iain Scholnick. He said costs are reduced by as much as 90 percent. The advertisers can create hundreds of ads -- each having different localized content, Scholnick said. All of the ads will be similar in style and tone. The only difference will be the parts that contain the local content, he explained.

"You have national brand advertisers, many with local retail outlets that can reach into the thousands," said Scholnick. "They want to bring the national brand to the local level but they run into this problem: How do you do that?" With the ImageSpan/Visible World platform, the advertisers "can take that local content and blend it with national brand content and have a cool, localized ad with a local feel," said Scholnick.

"There's always been a disconnect between national level advertising and local level advertising," he noted. "Many times, the local advertising is left up to the local retailers, which isn't great for the national brand. What you want to do is bring the controls the nationals want down to the local level."

The local videographers and photographers receive "shoot scripts" that explain all factors -- including length, content and "feel" as determined by advertisers or their agencies. "What we do is we specifically sit with the advertisers and partners... and we script the content," said Scholnick. "They say, `We want this look and feel in a local ad that reflects the look and feel of the national level ads.' It's tightly coordinated and it gives them tremendous control on that nesting of the local level content."

Scholnick said the platform is ideal for any companies with local presences, such as auto manufacturers, large retailers and restaurant chains. In addition to television, mobile device and Web campaigns, the platform works for print ads, he said.

ImageSpan is the exclusive license automation provider to the PLUS Coalition, the global standards organization for the image licensing industries.