Microsoft and Publicis announce digital partnership

Microsoft and Publicis Groupe have announced a partnership to cooperate on advertising and marketing opportunities in the digital world.

A joint statement said that the partnership will centre on three key components of the digital marketing and advertising industry:

• Content: The creation, production and distribution of programming, across a wide array of capabilities, tools, and services
• Performance: Technologies, methods and innovation focused on the delivery of better performance including search, ad serving and the portfolio of performance technologies and services.
• Audience: The definition, delivery and measurement of specific audiences based on a set of defined criteria

As part of the agreement, Starcom MediaVest Group, Zenith Optimedia and Digitas will be one of the first agency networks to use Microsoft Advertising’s planning and buying technology Admira when it goes live in Q4 2009.

Microsoft said that it will continue to commit to The Pool, a VivaKi research initiative that tests new online video ad formats and new digital ad models.

Darren Huston, corporate vice president of Microsoft Corp’s Consumer & Online group, said: “This agreement reflects our commitment to partner with the world’s largest agencies to drive new ideas and innovations that address the complex marketing needs and challenges facing advertisers today.

“It illustrates our belief that partnerships that bring creativity and technology together can be a powerful combination for brand marketers looking to grow their share.”

David Kenny, managing partner of VivaKi and a member of the Publicis Groupe Directoire, said: “Maurice Levy founded VivaKi on the principle of open source pursuit of digital solutions for clients.

“By partnering with Microsoft and focusing on three critical components of content, performance and audience, we are a stronger partner to our clients and can bring them solutions ahead of the marketplace. Given the pace of change in today’s consumer landscape, collaboration is the smartest approach to keep marketers ahead of the curve.”