• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, July 13, 2012

Adnetik, the pioneering agency trading desk that was incubated by Havas Digital, but which now operates as a free-standing business, has re-branded itself Digilant, a name combining the words "digital" and "vigilance."

"There has been a sea of change in digital advertising over the past few years. We have witnessed a proliferation of digital platforms, huge advancements in technology and a dramatic increase in ad volume. The pace of this change is unparalleled," stated CEO Edward Montes.

"We felt that the time was right to change the company's name to address these dynamics and set the stage for future innovation. We believe marketers are seeking an independent technology provider that operates with the client's best interests in mind."

In conjunction with the name change, the Digilant announced the introduction of two new products: Digilant AIM Audience Index and Digilant AIM Brand Network.

The company described the new index as a way for marketers to "reach new customers by expanding their target audience pool to include previously unidentified prospects whose profiles meet the specific criteria set forth by the brand." It said the technology uses a "unique scoring system that ranks both positive and negative relevancy among the entire universe of online users."

Those who receive high scores are modeled using look-alike technology, while those who receive low scores are eliminated from targeting consideration.