• July 25, 2006

An advertising task force behind an Internet media trading system is preparing an initiative aimed at dispelling the perception that the proposed system will commoditize vast media inventories, and drive down media prices. Steve Grubbs, chairman/CEO of PHD USA and a member of the task force, said the organization will soon initiate discussions with media sellers, and also is readying a press release.

The task force in May tapped eBay to provide the backbone for a test of the system, which will probably focus on TV ads. The test is slated for early next year. Grubbs said the platform is merely intended to eliminate waste. "We spend far too much time with the sales teams negotiating over pennies, nickels, and dimes," he said. "It's a long, drawn-out process. This will create a more efficient process."

Wal-Mart's Senior Vice President For Marketing Communications, Julie Roehm, first conceived the concept of creating a Nasdaq-like media trading system during the Association of National Advertisers' 2005 Television Advertising Forum in New York more than a year ago. At the time, she was a senior marketing executive at DaimlerChrysler.

-- Wayne Friedman