New York, NY – August 19, 2025 – IPG Mediabrands, the media and marketing solutions division of Interpublic Group (IPG), and Acxiom, the connected data and technology foundation of IPG, today announced the launch of Acxiom Contextual CTV powered by IRIS_ID, a groundbreaking solution that transforms Connected TV (CTV) advertising. This advancement is made possible through a strategic partnership between Acxiom and IRIS.TV, a Viant Technology company. Acxiom Contextual CTV empowers IPG Mediabrands clients with a scalable, privacy-first solution for content-level targeting.
Built by Acxiom on IRIS.TV’s widely adopted content ID, Acxiom Contextual CTV enables IPG Mediabrands advertisers to reach consumers with relevant messages based on the context, genre, and tone of the content being viewed to deliver outsized upper and lower funnel results.
Acxiom Contextual CTV is the first contextual solution that enables IPG Mediabrands clients to maximize the impact of their CTV investments, driving deeper engagement and ultimately, better performance. It enhances IPG Mediabrands’ leadership in identity-based targeting by adding a powerful layer of real-time contextual CTV signals to its marketing strategy. With a detailed taxonomy of over 1,200 content categories, investment teams can now plan and execute real-time contextual targeting across the streaming ecosystem with greater precision and scale.
The new Acxiom data solution will be available for both direct and programmatic activations across a range of platform partners.
“Acxiom Contextual CTV represents the future of programmatic—privacy by design, data-rich, and publisher-aligned,” said Simon Poplyansky, VP of Global Partnerships at Acxiom. “With the IRIS_ID, we’re able to enhance our core offerings with precise contextual targeting, driving superior outcomes for our brand partners.”
Proven Performance
According to Upwave, campaigns that leverage the IRIS_ID significantly outperformed standard CTV benchmarks, generating 2x lift in Awareness, 3x in Ad Recall, and 5x in Favorability compared to norms for all their measured CTV campaigns.
In a recent campaign for a global entertainment brand, IPG Mediabrands agency Mediahub saw significant improvements in tune-in lift and video completion rates when targeting IRIS-enabled publishers.
“As CTV matures, advertisers need tools that deliver scale, precision, and respect for consumer privacy,” said Field Garthwaite, CEO and Co-founder of IRIS.TV. “By adding real-time, video-level contextual data to its best-in-class data and identity solutions, Acxiom is giving IPG advertisers a powerful new layer of intelligence that consistently drives return on ad spend.”
By passing the IRIS_ID in CTV bid requests, publishers become “IRIS-enabled” and gain access to scaled demand from IPG advertisers seeking to align their messaging with high-quality, relevant content. “
CTV’s Ascendance and the Fragmentation Challenge
CTV viewership has reached a historic milestone. According to Nielsen’s July 2025 report, streaming has officially eclipsed the combined share of broadcast and cable TV for the first time. While this surge marks a new era for CTV consumption, it also brings a complex, fragmented supply landscape that has historically made it difficult for advertisers to plan, target, and measure campaigns consistently across platforms. IPG Mediabrands is addressing this fragmentation by leveraging the IRIS_ID to unify contextual data across publishers.
“We are constantly seeking innovative ways to enhance media efficiency and effectiveness for our clients,” said Molly Schultz, EVP Investment Strategy IPG Mediabrands. “This partnership with Acxiom and IRIS.TV delivers a holistic solution combining Acxiom’s powerful data with the IRIS_ID, a privacy-first solution for contextual CTV. The result is that IPG Mediabrands has a comprehensive suite of data solutions that are unlocking superior outcomes for clients. To partner with us as our clients shift more investment into streaming TV, we’re encouraging publishers to become IRIS-enabled.”
For more information on Acxiom Contextual CTV, please email acxiom@iris.tv.
About IRIS.TV
IRIS.TV, a Viant Technology company, is the leading content data marketplace for streaming. We structure, connect, and activate the world’s video-level data to create better viewing experiences and advertising outcomes. Our content identifier, the IRIS_ID, enables our partners to build scalable advertising solutions for contextual and brand-suitability planning, targeting, and measurement. Learn more about the IRIS_ID and the IRIS-enabled™ ecosystem of premium sellers, data partners, and ad platforms at www.iris.tv.