NEW YORK, Sept. 14, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced the launch of Watson Advertising Weather Targeting, a new suite of triggers designed for marketers to help them make the connection between weather and product sales actionable at scale without the use of third-party cookies or identifiers. The offering supports new advertising targeting triggers powered by Nielsen. Facilitated through the Nielsen Connect Partner Network, the largest open ecosystem of solution providers for retailers and manufacturers in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry, these new triggers leverage IBM Watson to aggregate and analyze large and complex data sets like weather and product sales to create more effective and efficient targeting opportunities while addressing new privacy standards. As part of their collaboration, IBM and Nielsen (NYSE: NLSN), through its Global Consumer business, will work together to combine the power of weather insights from The Weather Company with Nielsen's Retail Measurement Services (RMS) data to generate future reports for marketers.

"As we prepare for a future without third-party identifiers, it's critical that the industry put consumers at the center and rely on advanced technologies like artificial intelligence to help make sense of massive amounts of structured and unstructured data with a privacy-first mandate," said Bob Lord, SVP, Cognitive Applications, Blockchain and Ecosystems, IBM.

He added, "IBM and Nielsen have long been guided by the trust we build between clients and customers. We open up our technologies to make the ecosystem work for consumers and now more than ever, we must come together to help brands effectively leverage the medium while doing right by their audiences."

Watson Advertising Weather Targeting leverages enterprise-grade AI to analyze over 500 advertising triggers with up to six variables per trigger across 42,000 zip codes every hour, increasing the amount of actionable insights the company generates for brands. With this collaboration, IBM Watson Advertising will introduce a new suite of triggers and insight reports that will harness Nielsen's RMS data and weather from IBM's The Weather Company to provide brands with actionable advertising solutions that do not rely on personally identifiable information, third-party cookies or identifiers.

The solution is designed to help brands:

• Anticipate and activate digital campaigns based on weather's influence on consumer behavior and emotion according to zip code.
• Improve effectiveness by automatically serving meaningful, relevant ads to consumers.
• Reduce media waste by triggering messages only when and where consumers might appreciate the brand message and find it to be relevant.

The targeting solution will be available across the digital advertising ecosystem, including programmatic, display, social, search, video, email and digital out-of-home.

"IBM has long served as a leader in driving value from advanced technology, and in joining forces, we are further strengthening our Nielsen Connect Partner Network as an ecosystem of tech-forward partners to empower our CPG clients," said Johan Sjöstrand, Global President, Retail Intelligence, Nielsen. "The combined weight of IBM's weather intelligence and actionable AI with our expansive read into consumer purchasing habits will provide marketers with a clearer roadmap in the face of ever-changing patterns."

The Weather Targeting data tool is part of a suite of AI-driven targeting solutions. Most recently, IBM Watson Advertising used the technology to assist with the COVID-19 pandemic by enabling brands to run relevant and locally sensitive digital ads based on fluctuating infection rates. This effort was done in combination with The Weather Channel's COVID-19 tracker that was distributed across properties to provide Americans with general public health and safety information in the face of the global pandemic.

About IBM and Artificial Intelligence 
A world leader in AI software, services, and technology for business, IBM has deployed Watson AI solutions in thousands of engagements with clients across 20 industries and 80 countries. IBM's Watson AI solutions are widely used in industries, including seven of the 10 largest automotive companies and eight of the 10 largest oil and gas companies. For more information about IBM, visit ibm.com. 

About Nielsen
Nielsen Holdings plc (NYSE: NLSN) is a global measurement and data analytics company that provides the most complete and trusted view available of consumers and markets worldwide. Nielsen is divided into two business units. Nielsen Global Media provides media and advertising industries with unbiased and reliable metrics that create a shared understanding of the industry required for markets to function. Nielsen Global Connect provides consumer packaged goods manufacturers and retailers with accurate, actionable information and insights and a complete picture of the complex and changing marketplace that companies need to innovate and grow. Our approach marries proprietary Nielsen data with other data sources to help clients around the world understand what's happening now, what's happening next, and how to best act on this knowledge.

An S&P 500 company, Nielsen has operations in over 100 countries, covering more than 90% of the world's population. For more information, visit www.nielsen.com.

Statements regarding IBM's future direction and intent are subject to change or withdrawal without notice and represent goals and objectives only.

IBM Contact:
Megan Levinson
Megan.levinson@ibm.com

SOURCE IBM