In the Press: A wake-up call on brand safety

In the Press: A wake-up call on brand safety

A view from Martin Vinter, Head of Media, on Brand Safety, has been featured on Mediatel.

In this article, Martin highlights that YouTube is a platform offering brands a great space to advertise, but due to the very nature of user generated content – and technology deciding how and where to serve advertising – that comes with the risk of being associated with racists, terrorists and paedophiles.

Martin emphasized that while it’s true that its figure of detection will never remove 100 per cent of illegal content, as disclosed earlier this month, it misses the point. Not all (deemed) brand-unsafe environments are illegal. Brand preference is also a factor on the spectrum of ‘brand fraud’ at one end and ‘brand environment and association’ at the other.

Martin advises that rather than pulling spend every time these brand safety stories come to light, advertisers may want to go through a process of risk management – as many advertisers already do. But no amount of crystal balls will help answer the fundamental questions brands have, and that is why we are where we are – divesting partly or fully, controlling the investment and placements tighter, are the general outcomes for serious advertisers who understand the worth of their brand.

To read the article in full on Mediatel, please click here.

First featured on 20/03/2019

Ebiquity Insights

Equip yourself with the data, benchmarks, and strategic insights needed to navigate the evolving advertising landscape.

guides
The Guide to Contract Compliance Auditing in China
From measurement to management: the emerging role of MMM
June 11, 2026
guides
The Business Case for Responsible Media
Blog media transparency
Ten Years Later, Media Transparency Is Still Broken. Here’s What Marketers Need to Do About It.
June 8, 2026
FD influencer piece - larger image
Influencer marketing spend is growing. Are your controls keeping up?
June 2, 2026
research
Inside China: Solving a media market not built for international brands 
A comprehensive analysis of China's media ecosystem, with actionable strategies to optimise international advertising investment.
agency cost reductions
What do agency cost reductions mean for advertisers? 
March 12, 2026
Ebiquity Appoints David Swaebe as Head of Growth, Americas
March 9, 2026