• by Ben Frederick  @mp_benfred, November 3, 2015

After executing a few test runs earlier this year, Marketron has officially launched a programmatic radio marketplace called Mediascape Marketplace, which will serve 2,900 radio stations.

The platform claims it will reach three times more stations than iHeartMedia, Marketron’s direct competitor in the programmatic radio space. 

Marketron will receive data inputs from broadcasters along with integrations with Nielsen, Strata, Mediaocean and Synchronicity.

According to Jeff Haley, CEO of Marketron, “Both sellers and buyers are taking a cautious but deliberate approach to programmatic. As this is a completely new sales channel to broadcast radio, it makes sense that broadcasters will take some time to build a strategy around it.”

That cautious approach is that while Mediascape Marketplace will have the ability to purchase inventory, schedule it and deliver creative in real time, most commercial broadcast stations run one log a day, according to Haley.

Buying and selling is not yet a continuous process.

“Live log functionality and a robust marketplace to purchase and deliver advertising in real time is likely to be a long way off.  The important innovation is the exchange — automated buying and selling of radio time — offering and purchasing at a set price,” says Haley. “It’s not an auction, yet.”

Broadcasters on the platform will publish inventory at set rates in relation to the rest of their channels and sell out rates, and Marketron will collect a fee off of the gross price per ad unit. Peter Smyth, Greater Media Chairman and CEO said that programmatic radio buying is being watched closely in a statement.

“For now,” Haley says, “our deployment is specifically tied to broadcast spot radio.” But he claims the exchange is flexible enough to accommodate any type of audio or media.