• by Wayne Friedman , Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, February 1, 2007

Ernst & Young, the big financial auditing firm that has quietly been expanding its role in evaluating the media buys agencies make for their clients (Media Daily News Nov. 2, 2006), went public with its plans Wednesday, officially unveiling its new Marketing and Advertising Services (MARS) practice.

The unit is the formalization of an aggressive push E&Y has made into the media buying business, and comes as a major void was created by the official closure late last year of Hawk Audits, which some regard as the pioneer of media auditing in the U.S. marketplace. In fact, some former employees of Hawk Audits are believed to have joined the new E&Y practice.

Well before this formal announcement, E&Y has emerged as an aggressive player in the burgeoning media auditing business, showing up in pitches and reviews being conducted by major marketers looking into the competency of their media buying services.

E&Y, however, appears to be going after the tactical end of the market, so-called "compliance" audits that seek to confirm whether agencies and media delivered the buys advertisers paid for. At the higher end of the market, companies like Mike Lotito's Media IQ and John Billett's Media Performance Monitoring America are focusing on the strategy agencies and clients use to buy media.

E&Y's official entry into the market follows aggressive moves by other big management consulting firms on to the media buying turf. Last year, Accenture acquired Media Audits, one of the biggest players outside the U.S., and is believed to be looking to step up its presence in U.S.-based media auditing, as well.

Despite the competition, E&Y says there is a need for another independent agency to evaluate advertisers' media planning and buying performances.

"Unlike the Super Bowl, where there is no question whether an advertiser's ad ran because almost everyone is watching, the majority of advertising, whether broadcast, print, or online, doesn't typically have that kind of universal exposure," said Kenneth Fakler, global director of the MARS practice at Ernst & Young LLP, in a statement. "Therefore, advertisers may not know if their ad ran, ran correctly," he notes, "and if the advertiser received the value it paid for."