Digitas Bullish on Web Series, Takes Its 'Act' On The Road

The media agency Digitas is doing its part to ferry more money into the Web video business. It expects to book about 10 new advertising deals stemming from the “NewFront” Web video showcase it hosted along with its visit to the Cannes Lion International Advertising Festival, both in early June.

Buoyed by that success, the agency will now bring a smaller version of the NewFront to its regional offices and advertisers around the country starting this week. Joining Digitas in the mini road show will be DECA, EQAL, Next New Networks, blip.tv, CBS Interactive, Creative Artists Agency, Reveille and others, said John McCarus, VP and ground director for brand content at the Third Act, the branded entertainment arm of the media agency. Most of those companies were also presenters at the NewFront.

The road show kicks off July 14 in Chicago. For the next two weeks the agency plans to visit its offices and clients in Boston, Detroit, Atlanta and Stanford, Conn., McCarus said.

“The agency is very serious about the digital content space as a new vehicle for advertising,” he said. “We have made an investment in this and we are doing everything we can to connect the stars in the content creation community with clients that understand the space and have an appetite.”

Digitas has been one of the agencies leading the online video charge. It’s already inked deals for clients like Starburst, Kraft and Holiday Inn Express for content distributed through Web partners like MSN, BBE and Next New Networks.

The NewFront event is the agency’s nod to the television upfront buying season in the spring when TV networks present their new programming slates to Madison Avenue buyers.

The June NewFront was attended by about 550, including Digitas staffers, advertisers and Web video producers. Advertisers were in the areas of consumer packaged goods, health care, beverage, financial services and travel, McCarus said. Digitas brands speaking on panels at the event included IBM, Miller Coors and Kraft.

The deals coming out of the NewFront are also a sign that these sorts of well-planned and well-backed emerging media upfronts can indeed bring real dollars into online video. Digitas also attended the OnFrontNYC also in early June.