Omnicom in deals to target online ads

Omnicom, one of the world’s largest marketing services groups, has struck what it claims are industry-first partnerships with AOL, Yahoo and Microsoft, to gain direct access to the Internet companies’ consumer data.

The deals, which follow a similar agreement with Google last year, will give Omnicom’s agencies the ability to target advertising to particular locations, ages and demographics across the web’s biggest media networks. The partnerships are part of a wider strategy at Omnicom around the “art and science” of building greater expertise in digital advertising, as more clients increase their online advertising spending. Other elements of the partnerships involve technology companies providing “creative ambassadors” to work with Omnicom’s agencies. Omnicom believes its partnerships with the four largest online media owners will enable it to sidestep criticism around privacy, because it will not own the data, instead gaining constant access to the Internet companies’ own databases.