The ISA Media Charter For Digital Advertising

The Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA), rolled out the ISA Media Charter, an initiative aimed at enhancing transparency, security and collaboration within the country’s digital advertising landscape. The event saw the launch of the four key playbooks addressing Brand Safety, Viewability, Ad Fraud and First-Party Data. 

The charter aims to play a crucial role in enhancing collaboration between advertisers, agencies and publishers, ensuring that India’s digital advertising landscape grows stronger, safer and more transparent. 

The panel discussion on first-party data featured industry leaders like Chintan Soni of mFunnel.ai, Gautam Surath of Performics India, Shashi Udyavar from Meta and Tejas Apte of Unilever, who covered key topics such as the growing importance of first-party data for marketers, innovative approaches for consumer engagement and the need to navigate data privacy and regulatory framework.

In another session, Kellanova’s Sonam Pradhan, Chintan Soni and Karan Anand of IPG Mediabrands shared perspectives on enhancing ad viewability standards in the industry. 

Jaikishin Chhaproo of ITC and Gautam Surath brought our attention to ad frauds in the industry that come in the form of fake streams, ad stacking, app spoofing and pixel stuffing. 

Sunil Kataria, Chairman of ISA and CEO of the Lifestyle Business at Raymond, spoke about the goals of the ISA stating, “With over 70 years of advocating for advertisers, the Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA) has continually pushed the boundaries within the advertising ecosystem, promoting effective advertising practices.” 

About the playbooks, Tejas Apte, ISA Media Forum Head and General Manager - Media, South Asia, Unilever,  added, “Over the last few months we have worked with members of the ISA, agency partners and publishers to co-create four playbooks.” By implementing the playbooks, the ISA aims to make digital advertising safe, transparent and trustworthy for advertisers while improving the experience for end users. 

Ankit Desai, ISA Media Forum Co-Chair and Head of Media, Digital Marketing and Brand PR  (India & Global Centre of Excellence), shared, “The ISA  Media Charter will serve as a compass, guiding us towards more effective, ethical and consumer-centric advertising practices. It's a testament to our commitment to fostering an ecosystem where  innovation thrives alongside responsibility.” 

The Media Charter reflects the collective efforts of the advertising industry to address ongoing challenges.