For Sophie Poncin, general manager of Utiq for France, all the planets are aligned to make Utiq a commercial success. This AdTech, created by four telecom operators – Orange, Deutsche Telecom, Telefónica and Vodafone – to deal with the hemogeny of the digital giants in internet advertising, responds, in his eyes, to the major challenges of the moment.
The first is to offer guarantees in terms of the confidentiality of personal data five years after the implementation of the GDPR. “ Privacy is becoming an unavoidable issue for publishers and advertisers alike, she believes. During a surf, an Internet user today gives a large number of consents without always knowing for whom or why. »
Criticized by its often opaque practices and by the large number of players involved throughout the chain, the programmatic advertising market is, according to her, at the end of a cycle. Especially since we have to prepare the next world, without third-party cookies. Google has announced their death for 2024. Already, Safari and Firefox banish them, i.e. from 35 to 40% of web browsing.
Giving Internet users control over their digital life
In this context, Utiq, which sees itself as a “game changer” of online advertising, opposes a more virtuous model, giving the user back control over his digital life. From a dedicated portal, the “consent hub”, he can withdraw his consent at any time to a brand or media in one click. Utiq’s name comes from “you” and “to tick” like ticking an approval box.
Concretely, Utiq generates a token “a pseudonymised and secure token” (a unique random sequence of numbers and letters) linked to a user’s mobile or fixed network subscription. The user then sees a Utiq consent pop-in with the logo of his telecom operator displayed on the page he is visiting.
If he gives his consent, this “consent pass” is divided into two unique encrypted identifiers. The “martech pass”, with a lifespan of 90 days, is aimed at the publisher who can enrich it with their own data. the “adtech pass”, which expires after 24 hours, is intended for advertisers.
Can a second consent banner after that of the publisher be an obstacle to the acceptance of this model? Sophie Poncin doesn’t think so. ” It won’t necessarily be two pop-ins in a row, 80% of people have already given their consent before accessing a site. Moreover, if the user refuses to give his consent, the publisher loses nothing. Finally, Utiq makes it possible to once again address lost audiences such as Safari and Firefox users. »
SFR and Bouygues Telecom present at the launch
For now, the device only covers mobile web browsing while waiting to be deployed on mobile applications, the SDK (software development kit) is already ready. Activated via the SIM card signal, it works with 4G/5G mobile connections but not yet in Wifi. “ The problem is about to be solved “says Sophie Poncin.
Utiq will also quickly extend to fixed terminals with the IP version while waiting for connected TV tomorrow. ” The technology will be cross site – many solutions already are – but also cross devices, rejoices the former leader of Orange Advertising France. Only telecom operators are able to offer such a powerful solution. »
After the experimental phase in Germany, which gave encouraging results with more than 80% consent, French brands and publishers will take part in tests in July and September. On the side of telecom operators, Orange, as co-founder of Utiq will, of course, be part of it. SFR and Bouygues Telecom will also be on board but “ Not yet Free “.
For its launch, Utiq has entered into a European-level partnership with Adform. Very present in Germany where it has a 30% market share, this advertising purchasing platform (DSP) is much less known on this side of the Rhine. ” Discussions are already underway with other players in France,” would like to reassure Sophie Poncin.