Donovan Data Systems

Donovan Data Systems

Type	Private
Industry	Computer software Information technology
Founded	New York City (1967)
Founder(s)	Michael Donovan
Headquarters	New York City
Area served	Worldwide
Products	media buying (iDesk, Spot Desktop, MediaExplorer) advertising agency workflow (BrandOcean) broadcast sales (Reppak) client accounting, corporate accounting
Employees	1,000
Website	donovandata.com

Donovan Data Systems (DDS) develops and provides advertising software and computing services. Its customers include advertising agencies, media owners, advertisers, broadcast sales organizations (e.g., rep firms such as Katz Media Group) and television networks (e.g., ABC, Telemundo and Univision). Agencies using DDS include creative and media specialists, and independent agencies as well as members of the six major agency groups (Aegis, Havas, Interpublic, Omnicom, Publicis and WPP), serving clients like Honda, Mars, Coca-Cola, AT&T, BMW and Unilever.

Its headquarters is in New York City, United States. DDS also has offices in Canada, the UK, Germany, France and Ireland.

History

DDS was founded in New York by Michael Donovan in 1967, and soon began offering software as a service. It opened in London, England in 1972, in Düsseldorf, Germany in 1987, in Paris, France in 1994, and in Dublin, Ireland in 1998.

DDS was an early advocate for electronic data interchange (EDI) in the media industry, working on system-to-system exchanges to eliminate manual processes. In 1989, DDS collaborated with Jefferson-Pilot Data Services to design a standard local broadcast electronic invoice format, which the companies donated to the industry. The format expanded over the years to include all types of broadcast including radio, local cable and network cable. DDS built electronic invoicing capabilities into its local (spot) television system in 1989 and into its network television system some years later. In the early '90s, DDS worked with other software companies to develop the open standard Direct Agency / Rep Exchange (DARE), so that spot TV buyers and sellers can exchange orders, offers, revisions and confirmations^[1]. DDS continues to manage the directory and infrastructure for all DARE users. In the mid to late '90s, DDS took part in discussions with The Electronic Cable Committee (TECC) on data interchange for network cable. The result of this initiative was electronic delivery of original contracts and invoices from cable networks to agencies^[2].

In 2006, in conjunction with the largest radio rep firms, DDS developed Radio EDI (REDI), a specification for electronic radio orders, based on DARE. DDS manages the REDI directory and infrastructure for the entire industry. In 2008, DDS organized and led a consortium of software vendors and developed the open Proposal XML standard for sending and receiving spot TV, local cable TV and radio avails, or proposals^[3].

Since 2007, as a result of work with the Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau (CAB), schedule changes sent by cable networks (electronic cable changes) update network inventory held at the agency, facilitating discrepancy resolution and eliminating input and transcription errors^[4]. In 2009, DDS upgraded the infrastructure for this initiative^[5]. Today, all cable networks sending electronic cable changes communicate with DDS agencies through a web services portal.

Technology for advertising workflow

DDS software focuses on workflow within marketing communications companies, and between them and their trading partners. Electronic processes include exchanging invoices, RFPs and proposals (for digital media), orders, offers, proposals and revisions (for TV and radio), insertion orders (for digital and print), and cable TV schedule changes for updating network inventory.

In defining standard data formats, processes and business rules, the company has working relationships with many industry trade associations, including the 4A's, Cabletelevision Advertising Bureau (CAB), Radio Advertising Bureau (RAB), Television Bureau of Advertising (TVB) and the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB).

Advertising agencies use DDS integrated realtime software for buying media of all types (digital and online, local and national TV and radio, print and out-of-home), managing workflow (including estimates, purchase orders, and timesheets for copywriters, art directors, and media planners / buyers), and for client and corporate accounting.

For digital advertising, DDS's iDesk integrates with website publishers and ad servers so agencies can plan, buy, execute and bill advertising in the most efficient way possible.

DDS's system for broadcast sales organizations (rep firms) and TV and radio stations integrates with DDS media buying applications, providing direct communication between advertising agency systems and media sales systems.

References

1. ^ 'Jefferson Pilot Data Services and Donovan Data Systems have teamed up to form Direct Agency / Rep Exchange (DARE), a paperless ordering system.' See 'The paperless chase; three companies are engaged in a race to transform electronically the archaic spot broadcast buying system. (AdValue Network, Direct Agency / Rep Electronic Connection, Katz Corp.)', Mediaweek, May 24, 1993; http://business.highbeam.com/137332/article-1G1-13774028/paperless-chase-three-companies-engaged-race-transform. Retrieved 2011-07-19
2. ^ 'Network cable gets EDI, local still trying', Multichannel News, April 14, 1997; http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1G1-19456124.html. Retrieved 2011-07-19
3. ^ http://www.proposalxml.com/. Retrieved 2011-07-19
4. ^ 'CAB And DDS Announce Successful Results From E-Business Initiative', http://www.thecab.tv/main/press/releases/cab-and-dds-announce-succ.shtml. Retrieved 2011-07-19
5. ^ Wayne Friedman, 'Media Buys: DDS, Cabletelevision Report Big e-Business Increases', MediaPost, Sep 18, 2009, http://www.mediapost.com/publications/?fa=Articles.printFriendly&art_aid=113792. Retrieved 2011-07-20.

External links

• donovandata.com
• dds.co.uk
• dds.de
• dds.fr
• ddscanada.com