Origin’s cross-media measurement solution has landed: A view from the bridge
Opinion
UK advertisers can now measure deduplicated campaign reach and frequency across linear TV and online platforms through an advertiser-led, independent, single-source dataset. However, it has not all been plain sailing as Tom George describes.
July 2025 marked a special month in the Origin calendar.
After extensive testing involving over 30 of the UK’s largest advertisers, Origin announced its availability to the broader market.
It marked the start of an ambitious journey, one that, so far, has been eventful. Everyone has an opinion on Origin…..
If Origin has achieved one thing, it is the surfacing of the passion for, and the value placed on, independent advertising audience measurement by the market at large.
I do not pretend that getting it to market has been a seamless experience.
Nor do I claim that all opinions have always been supportive.
But that is fine.
It underlines the scale of the task taken on by ISBA director general Phil Smith, his ISBA members, the Origin team and last, but not least, the programme stakeholders
Given the demand from advertisers, both in the UK and globally, if building a comprehensive cross-media measurement solution were easy, it would have been achieved long ago.
The fact that Origin has provoked much debate and (sometimes heated) discussion reassures me of the market need for the Origin solution. I would have found a ‘vanilla’ reception and acceptance more worrying.
Origin is the prototype for the World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) global cross-media measurement programme and represents a world-first. Origin is the first to market and has delivered on its launch brief to deliver deduplicated cross-media reach and frequency measurement and reporting.
This has been no mean feat.
And let’s take a moment to reflect on this.
Advertisers in the UK can now accurately measure deduplicated campaign reach and frequency across linear TV & online platforms through an advertiser-led, independent, trusted, non-proprietary, privacy-safe single-source dataset—no proxy data or stitching together of different data sources here.
Overcoming the technical and computational challenges in combining first-party census data and sample-based panel data to produce a measurement that is trusted (and that adheres to privacy regulations) is difficult.
And there is still much to do.
Expanding the footprint
Currently, Origin allows measurement across linear TV, online video and online display with YouTube and Meta inventory, respectively.
Subscribers can therefore produce reports covering c. 60% of UK ad spend (excluding search). Work is well underway on the inclusion of both Amazon and TikTok, which we expect to be completed soon – at which point, market coverage will rise to c. 70%.
This is substantial. Our ambition is to cover as much of the market as is feasibly possible.
A proof of concept (POC) is currently in progress with the print publishers’ online assets via The Ozone Partnership. A successful POC has been completed with Royal Mail, which is understandably keen to surface direct mail audience data in the platform, and Samsung Ads is making significant progress in its quest to integrate CTV data.
In fact, the wider media owner community recognises the potential for Origin analysis and the opportunity it provides to demonstrate transparency to advertisers, to strengthen relationships with clients, to contribute to industry trust and to ‘level the playing field’, ensuring their inventory is evaluated alongside competitors in a fair, consistent and advertiser-led environment.
Indeed, factors that influenced Pinterest and cinema (as represented by DCM, Pearl & Dean and the CAA), to become the newest members of the Origin stakeholder base.
A lot has been achieved, with more to follow
As outlined, what has been delivered to date is only the beginning of an extensive road map. Origin is very much a work in progress. There is a lot still to do, and the pioneering nature of what we are trying to achieve means there is always room for improvement.
For example, the lack of a universal standard for campaign nomenclature has meant that it can sometimes be difficult to find all campaign assets in the platform, and this will present more challenges as more media types are added. A lack of naming conventions is not an Origin problem per se, but it could be characterised as a first-mover disadvantage.
This comes with the territory, but we are committed to overcoming all the challenges thrown at us and to improving user search functionality and, indeed, the user experience in general. Search upgrades will be announced in the coming weeks, and the use of AI to enhance the process is currently being tested.
In addition, more product features will be added, such as extended frequency reporting and extended data availability, allowing users to access campaigns older than the existing 90-day window.
Look out for further announcements over the coming weeks and months.
It is also appropriate to update on a much-discussed topic—the broadcasters and the industry TV currency, Barb.
Despite attempts to characterise it otherwise by some commentators, Origin’s relationship with the broadcasters remains cordial and constructive. Indeed, Origin and representatives from its advertiser stakeholder base attended a Thinkbox board meeting earlier this year.
My take was of a practical and productive meeting – an opinion that would be shared by Lindsey Clay, CEO of Thinkbox, and the commercial heads of the UK broadcasters: Kelly Williams of ITV, Rak Patel of C4, and Brett Aumuller of Sky.
We make no secret of our desire for them to take a more active part in the programme, and we remain committed to finding a way to make this happen. It is something the market would welcome.
Discussions with Barb are also positive.
Origin was built to ingest JIC data, and through regular monthly meetings, both Barb and Origin remain committed to finding a way to include Barb data in the platform – in a manner which satisfies both Barb underwriters and Origin stakeholders.
Finally, this piece marks three years of being at the Origin helm.
My ask is threefold:
Market patience as improvements are made; continue detailed user feedback to help deliver an even better service; and participation by more advertisers —a number of new advertisers have already signed up, and discussions continue with over 50 more.
Origin’s aim is to drive campaign effectiveness, improve campaign efficiency, and enhance the consumer experience of advertising through a trusted, transparent system built by the industry for the industry.
Not contentious ambitions, I would suggest – I look forward to many more industry debates.
Tom George is the CEO of Origin