A new media independent designed to bring a specialist and focused service to the online media planning and buying industry is launched by Charlie Dobres, Andrew Walmsley and Craig Wilkie today.
Called, i-level, the service aims to work with media agencies and advertisers to offer online planning, buying, monitoring and analysis. The three co-founders bring with them a range of knowledge and experience drawn from backgrounds in both new and traditional media marketing.
Dobres, CEO of i-level, has spent the last eighteen months as the general secretary of the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB), UK. He steps down from that post this week to concentrate on i-level. In 1996 he set up Lowe Digital, the new media department of the Lowe & Partners network of agencies.
Andrew Walmsley, i-level’s chairman, founded and chairs the Digital Marketing Group (DMG), an industry body of 19 of the country’s top 20 agencies. Before leaving last month to start i-level, Walmsley was head of digital media at Bartle Bogle Hegarty. Craig Wilkie, creative director at i-level, was a founder member of the Guardian‘s New Media Lab and launched the paper’s commercial online activities.
The company opens its doors today with over £4 million of billing, giving it an estimated 10% share of the UK market. “Our aim is to ensure that i-level defines the next decade in media buying on the internet. We’re passionate about what we do, and we’re investing heavily in both systems and people to deliver a new level of ability in this sector,” says Dobres.
To read an interview with the i-level founders click Interview – Charlie Dobres, Andrew Walmsley and Craig Wilkie, founding partners – i-level.
i-level c/o Montgomery-Baird Communications: 0181 440 9100
