The worlds of crypto-currency and toilet paper may seem to have little in common – but the technology that underpins Bitcoin may soon help one of the world’s largest personal hygiene product makers clean up its media business.
Kimberly-Clark, whose – brands include Andrex, Corronelle and Huggies – was one of the companies announced by IBM and Mediaocean this week as joining “a blockchain consortium for the digital media supply chain,” along with Unilever and Kellogg.
So how can blockchain, which is a decentralized ledger of activities that occur within a given system, help advertisers like those?
“This will create a level of speed and agility and enable innovation,” says Josh Herman, Global Director, Integrated Marketing, Media, and Analytics, IT at Kimberly-Clark, in this video interview with Beet.TV.
“The blockchain will allow people to have more comfort and confidence about what we bought, what got delivered, and whether it made an impact. And the faster that we can do that, makes it easier to try new things.”
Specifically, for advertisers, blockchain could shine a spotlight on every fraction of a cent that might be taken by links in the chain, after a couple of years plagued by the creeping realisation that much of their money is siphoned off by intermediary platforms.
“It’s hard to keep up with the consumer when your business systems can’t tell you whether or not you’ve succeeded in delivering your message to the consumer,” Herman adds.
“The (consortium) programme includes everyone that participates in that value chain of getting the digital media message to the consumer.”
The consortium setup involves IBM’s Hyperledger blockchain fabric helping to power a system connected to DSPs, SSPs and more through Mediaocean.
This video is part of a series produced at Cannes Lions 2018 on the emergence of blockchain in the media ecosystem. This series is presented by Mediaocean. For more videos from the series, visit this page.
