Ad Production Payroll? XR Has an App For That

As long as real people are used in the making of ads, there’s got to be an easier way to get them all paid.

XR has released a new XR Pay mobile app that will help with the process of hiring advertising production crews and doing payroll for the talent both in front of the camera and behind it.

XR Pay automates crew onboarding, timecards and payment, reducing the challenge of complying with labor laws, union rules and state regulations. It helps get the right talent in place, maintain schedules and meet deadlines, the company said.

“With the XR Pay app, we’re bringing the same speed, simplicity, and trust we’ve delivered for paying talent in front of the camera to crews behind it,” said John Batter, CEO of XR. “Our platform puts all critical payroll features in one place, right where crews and production teams need them. It’s a natural next step that builds on the trust we’ve earned powering talent payments for the industry’s biggest brands and agencies.”

The app is built on the same XR system that already processes about 80% of commercial talent payments, a total of more than $1.3 billion annually.

XR Pay is now available to brands and production companies. It can be accessed on mobile devices or via desktops. 

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Media buyer Horizon Media said it is adding advanced audience planning and measurement data to blu, Horizon’s AI-driven marketing platform.

Horizon was the first agency to enable matching of Nielsen panel data to third-party audience segments and client first-party data through blu in 2019. 

The new arrangement will enable Horizon clients to seamlessly match first-party data with Nielsen and TransUnion IDs and use those same advanced audiences throughout the campaign cycle, from planning to measurement.

“Nielsen continues to provide best-in-class, person-level data that helps us bring richer, data-driven solutions to our clients,” said Michele Donati, executive VP and  chief of futures, at Horizon Media. “Our first-to-market integration, together with TransUnion, marks a pivotal step in building the next generation of advanced audience planning and measurement that drives business outcomes for our brands,”

The expanded relationship with Nielsen will include Horizon using Nielsen Big Data + Panel measurement.

“This new era of our relationship with Horizon will empower advertisers to unlock the full value of their first-party data with greater precision, scalability and interoperability. We are excited to keep innovating to drive their continued success and provide them with the measurement they need to drive data-driven linear transactions,” said Matt Devitt, head of advertisers and agencies at Nielsen.

Earlier this week said Nielsen said its audience segments from the Nielsen Marketing Cloud are available to advertisers across the Amazon Ads marketplace, including the Amazon DSP and the Amazon Marketing Cloud.

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Getting something you’re watching on your phone to play on a larger TV screen can be difficult. Now Tubi, the Fox-owned streaming service, says it is enabling Matter Casting, a new casting standard that makes it easier to put video on TVs.

At this point, with Matter Casting, Tubi viewers can cast content from their Apple iOS and Android devices to Fire TV without installing a special app. 

Developed by the Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) and championed by Amazon, Matter Casting users can launch and control Tubi on Fire TV directly from their mobile device. Matter Casting handles automatic app installation, secure sign-in, and real-time playback control, creating a true over-the-top (OTT) experience rather than a temporary screen mirror.

Matter Casting will be available for Tubi next week in the U.S. and it will be available globally by the end of the month on select Fire TV devices, such as Fire TV Stick 4k Max, Fire TV Omni QLED Series, Fire TV Omni Mini-LED, and Fire TV Cube (3rd Gen).