Exclusive
Martin Woolley and Paul Phelps, the former co-founders of the Alliance of Media Independents (AMI), have launched a new collective for independent media agencies, with 30 already signed up as founding members.
Media United aims to build on the work of AMI, which brought independent agencies together to share resources and promote the sector, with a greater focus on commercial opportunities, industry standards and campaigning.
The launch follows a dispute over the running of AMI within the Alliance of Independent Agencies (AIA), after which Woolley and Phelps left their voluntary roles, as previously reported by The Media Leader.
AMI co-founders look to launch rival body for independents after being removed by AIA
Woolley said Media United would look to improve on the work undertaken at AMI, including developing a formal accreditation scheme for digital, data and ad tech providers.
The scheme will assess providers against agency due diligence criteria and seek to verify their claims, including whether businesses are legitimate and whether their stated capabilities, such as the use of artificial intelligence, can be substantiated.
Woolley added that he hoped the accreditation scheme would become an objective and thorough standard that carried weight across the wider industry.
Media United is a commercial collective of full-mix independent agencies, all of which plan and buy across the full range of media and are not owned by a global holding company.
The founding members are: Accord, Ad-Fabric, Alchemy, AMS Media Group, Ardmore, Boutique, Craft, Cream, December19, Electric Glue, Flight Feather, JAA, Join the Dots, Lavery Rowe, MA, Media Campaign, Mediaplus UK, MFM, MI Media, Mostly Media, Open Partners, PASHN, Piqniq, Project5, Reign, The Barber Shop, The Grove, The Kite Factory, TMWI, and The Specialist Works.
Describing Media United as “new, fresh and dynamic”, Woolley said everyone they had spoken to so far “‘gets it’ and is keen to be involved”.
“We’re excited about the future and what we can build between us,” he added.
Media United is majority-owned by its members and governed through a member-led board. The collective will be funded through membership fees and income from commercial partners.
It will also draw on the collective expertise of independent agencies to campaign on issues affecting their clients, particularly challenger brands with media budgets anywhere up to c£30m.
Woolley said the collective plans to launch a campaign for quality content next year, arguing that independent agencies can help challenger brands compete by prioritising well-planned campaigns and high-quality media environments rather than relying on scale alone.
He cited quality journalism, television and filmmaking as examples of content that can benefit advertisers while supporting the wider media ecosystem.
Woolley said the collective wanted to act as a catalyst between independent agencies and the wider industry, with Media United’s partner model intended to bring agencies together with media owners, ad tech companies, data providers, events and research businesses.
Media United will be at The Future of Media London Challenger Stage on 4 November.
