The decision follows the merger of Joint Industry Committee for Web Standards (JICWEBS) and the Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG) earlier this year. The two organisations have merged under the TAG name.

The transfer to ABC was decided by JICWEBS’s former board, which contained representatives of several cross-industry bodies including the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising (IPA) and the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB UK).

ABC had worked with JICWEBS on viewability since 2013, and recently helped develop mobile web and in-app viewability testing. It also helped create the UK’s AV metrics a decade ago.

ABC releases data for the UK media industry to use when trading print, digital and event advertising, and also acts as an auditor for media products and services. 

Simon Redlich, chief executive at ABC, said: “We’re pleased to be managing these important standards on behalf of the industry. They stand as clear benchmarks of good practice and have been the basis of our viewability and AV audit tests over many years.

“We look forward to facilitating discussions on future developments to best meet the industry’s needs.”