Over 90 years of trust and counting…
We've spent nearly a century adapting to change and delivering value for the industry.
As we continue our journey, we're excited to continue shaping the future of media - alongside our industry - with the same passion, dedication and expertise that’s kept us evolving since 1931.
Join us on a journey spanning over 90 years of collaboration, innovation and trust...
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Early years and global influence
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1931
The Birth of ABC - the UK's first Joint Industry Currency (JIC)
We’re formed by ISBA and establish the first industry standards for circulation measurement. The Daily Express is the first group to join. A further 159 magazines and newspapers join us over the next decade. JIC data becomes recognised for its exceptional quality and, by the end of the century, a further six JICs will have been created to deliver trusted measurement for the media industry.
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1948
Growing Influence
By 1948, we have 720 members including advertisers, agencies and publishers. Audrey Deans becomes our first female Council member, representing the IPA.
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1955
Widening Horizons
Over 500 publications are now delivering ABC figures, reflecting our broadening impact on the media landscape
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1963
Global Connections
We become one of the founding members of the International Federation of ABCs (IFABC), fostering international collaboration.
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1971
Continued Expansion
More than 2000 publications are now delivering ABC figures. These are estimated to encompass 90% of all press advertising spend.
This small ad in the 1971 ABC member report reveals how our marketing support has changed a little in practice, if not in intent!
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1981
The Value of Free Papers
We start certifying the distribution of free newspapers. We also deliver our first ever exhibition attendance figures.
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1985
A Worldwide Influence
We form the Hong Kong Audit Board of Circulation (HKABC), an affiliate organisation of ABC UK.
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1987
Continued Growth
We now have over 3500 members.
This announcement in ABC’s Circulation Review, sent to members each year, reveals how we’ve been pushing technological boundaries, too! -
1994
Expanding our Capabilities
We bring auditing ‘in house’ with the launch of our own audit department.
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The rise of digital
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1996
Ready for Digital
ABC Electronic is established, enabling us to deliver independent certification for electronic media data.
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1997
Website Audits Begin
Our first website traffic certificates are released. 15 were released in the first year, including nme.com, newscientist.com and autotrader.co.uk.
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1998
Celebrating the Magazine Sector
We issue our first Consumer Magazine Report. This includes titles like PC Gamer, PC Pro, .NET – The Internet Magazine, Smash Hits, Empire, Woman’s Weekly, FHM and Sky TV Guide. AA Magazine reported the highest total average net circulation of 3,986,272 for Jan-Jun 1998. The biggest YoY % increase was achieved by Playstation Power – in fact, the top ten % increases were all computer magazines, except for Match of the Day!
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1999
Shedding Light on Bulks
We deliver first Bulk Distribution Standards for free newspapers and issue our first certificate.
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2000
Pioneering Digital Standards
We establish JICWEBS (Joint Industry Committee for Web Standards), which brings together industry representatives. They start delivering standards for online media measurement.
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2005
Trust in Digital
As consumer habits evolve, we spearhead the delivery of Digital Edition standards.
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2006
A Key Moment in Brand Safety
In a groundbreaking move, we conduct the world's first Brand Safety audit.
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2006
Countering Invalid Traffic
In collaboration with the IAB US, we establish the ABC/IAB International Robots & Spiders List, helping companies to filter out invalid traffic from their measurement results.
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2006
Sharing Expertise
We collaborate with COUNTER on their Code of Practice for electronic journals, further establishing ourselves as a valued source of expertise in standard-setting and auditing.
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2008
A First for Video Metrics
We certify video (Audio Visual) metrics for the first time, ensuring accurate measurement in this rapidly growing area of advertising.
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2010
Branching into Data Privacy
We conduct our first Online Behavioural Advertising (OBA) audit to IAB UK standards.
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2011
App and Email Data Released
We release our first App data and issue our first Email certificates.
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ABC expands assurance services and receives industry-wide recognition
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2012
Two More Firsts for Digital
We release the world's first Content Verification (CV) Report. We also introduce our first Digital Publication certificate.
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2012
Multi-Platform ABC Certificates Launched
Publishers can now report figures from multiple platforms on one ABC certificate, helping to demonstrate their reach. This later evolves into today’s ABC Brand Report, which can include figures for print, digital, website, email newsletters, apps and social media.
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2013
ABC Underpins TV and OBA Measurement
BARB commissions us to audit census-based IPTV data, further expanding our remit as a bespoke audit services provider for the industry. We’re also appointed by the EDAA to deliver pan-European OBA (Online Behavioural Advertising) audits.
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2014
Certified Suppliers Scheme
We launch our Certified Suppliers Scheme, making it quicker and easier for media owners and their suppliers to provide the necessary data for an ABC audit.
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2014
Delivering Viewability Insights
We release our first Viewability Report, empowering media buyers to choose the viewability tools best suited for their campaigns.
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2016
Combatting Ad Fraud
Under JICWEBs standards, we conduct our first Ad Fraud audit as a step to minimising fraudulent practices within the digital advertising ecosystem.
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2016
Worldwide Brand Report Launched
The Economist is the first ABC member to commission our global reporting capabilities. We release our Worldwide Brand Report covering six territories and multiple platforms. The Economist continues to value its ABC Worldwide Brand Report as an essential reporting and sales tool to this day.
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2018
Sharing our Expertise
We partner with JICMAIL to underpin their new standards for direct mail.
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2019
Introducing Social Media Metrics
Reflecting the changing media landscape, we include social media metrics in our Brand Reports, enhancing insights for advertisers and agencies.
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2020
ABC in Demand
The IAB UK commissions us to audit their very first Gold Standard process; we take over the management of the UK’s Viewability and AV Standards following the merger of TAG and JICWEBs; we commence independent audits for TAG (Trustworthy Accountability Group) AND CFlight chooses us to audit its Broadcaster ad server data. A particularly busy year!
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2020
Remaining agile in the face of a global pandemic
The media distribution landscape shifts as Covid-19 hits and government restrictions come into force. We work closely with our Board and members to adapt our reporting standards. This enables transparent media reporting to continue as media owners find innovative ways to reach consumers throughout the pandemic.
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2021
Delivering Trust for Digital Events
Our new Digital Events Audit enables event organisers to provide accurate measurement for their partners, no matter what type of event they’re running.
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2023
Expanding our work in trusted TV measurement
TAM Ireland appoints us to conduct audits of commercials on Broadcast Video On Demand (BVOD). These biannual audits confirm the AV Play Completion Rate and will be undertaken with all broadcasters selling BVOD advertising in the Irish market.
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To be continued.......
