Dive Brief:

• Omnichannel advertising platform Mediaocean has integrated TikTok into its closed ecosystems optimization solution, formerly known as Scope by 4C, per an announcement.
• The deal is meant to help agencies and brands more efficiently manage their TikTok campaigns, as well as improve performance through audience segmentation, creative optimization and bid management, Mediaocean Chief Product Officer Anupam Gupta said in a statement.
• The move underpins widespread demand for marketing services oriented around TikTok, which has surpassed 100 million monthly active users in the U.S. The ByteDance-owned video app continues to deepen its ties to agency land as it tries to build out a more well-rounded platform for brands to tap into.

Dive Insight:

Mediaocean's partnership with TikTok offers another sign that the social video app is reaching fresh levels of maturity as users sign up in droves and brands race to reach those eyeballs. The deal arrives as the ad market continues to rebound following a brutal 2020, with much of the resurgent spend directed at digital and social channels.

Mediaocean, which provides services and software around media planning, buying and analytics, as well as invoices and payments, is used by all of the major ad holding groups, along with a variety of independent players and brands. By integrating TikTok into its closed ecosystem optimization solution, the ad tech platform aims to help marketers manage campaigns more easily alongside other channels while improving performance.

The news marks another step in Mediaocean's yearslong efforts to develop a stronger omnichannel focus. The privately owned firm in July acquired ad server Flashtalking in a deal reportedly valued at $500 million, with an eye on bolstering its capabilities in emerging spaces like connected TV. Mediaocean says it now handles $200 billion in annualized media spend and delivers over 1 trillion ad impressions per month. Ownership of the company recently switched hands from Vista Equity Partners to private equity firms CVC and TA.

For TikTok, the agreement is another way to shore up relationships with brands and agencies that will be critical to growing its business and competing with more established social media rivals. TikTok named Publicis Groupe its first commerce agency partner in August, giving the ad holding company's clients special access to upcoming shopping tools and an incubator program called "Community Commerce Sprint" that is timed to run near the holidays. TikTok has other deals in place with WPP around advertising products and mobile innovations and IPG Mediabrands regarding its creator community.