American Media Inc. Selects Operative for Advertising Business Management

Leading Celebrity News and Health & Fitness Publisher Looks to Boost Sales and Improve Operational Efficiencies with Operative.One

New York, NY. – March 7, 2011 – Operative Media, Inc., the advertising business management company, today announced that American Media Inc., (AMI), the leading publisher of celebrity journalism and health and fitness magazines in the U.S., has selected Operative.One to seize new digital ad revenue opportunities, while streamlining sales, delivery and finance operations for cost savings across the organization.

“We are very excited about the new insights we will gain from utilizing Operative.One,” said Robin Keller, vice president of Digital Ad Sales for American Media Inc.  “Having an ad business management system will enable us to centralize account and product inventory data so that our sales teams can more strategically and quickly package and sell inventory cross-platform.  In addition to our sales teams, our operations and finance teams will also have access to the data which will enable them to better manage and optimize campaigns and improve billing processes and procedures.  We believe this will drive significant cost savings throughout our advertising business.”

Specifically, AMI plans to use Operative.One to:
• More strategically package and sell inventory across digital platforms including display, mobile and video
• Streamline and automate operating principles and procedures
• Deliver greater transparency into product, sales and overall business performance
• Ensure invoices are issued accurately and in less time

“Media companies and their partners cannot exploit new market opportunities if product, sales, operations and financial processes and systems operate as silos,” said Kelly Ford, senior vice president of Marketing at Operative.  “Operative.One ensures operational efficiencies that lend agility to the innovation process and maximize sell-through for our clients.  We are delighted to partner with AMI to deliver an end-to-end solution that enables scale and innovation for their advertising business.”

In October 2010, Operative launched the first end-to-end ad business management platform, Operative.One. The solution joins the demand and supply sides of the advertising ecosystem, eliminating complexities of the digital value chain by integrating all processes and systems necessary to package, sell, traffic, manage, optimize and bill ads.

Based on Operative’s success with over 200 leading media companies, Operative.One customers can expect to significantly cut their advertising transaction costs:
– Ad Sales teams reduce RFP execution costs leaving more time for prospecting and building client relationships.

– Ad Operations teams reduce campaign execution costs, minimize over/under delivery, and boost overall renewal rates.

– Finance teams cut campaign billing costs in half by reducing billing errors to 1% (or less), eliminating discrepancies and make goods, and enabling collection on 100% of contracted revenue in less time.

About Operative
Established in 2000, Operative) is the advertising business management company that gives media industry leaders and their partners the freedom to move fast and forward with solutions that eliminate complexities within the advertising ecosystem. Through the alignment of people, process and technology, Operative.One brings together the business processes and systems necessary to package, sell, traffic, manage, optimize and collect revenue on advertising products. More than 200 industry leaders, representing more than 30 percent of digital advertising revenue, rely on Operative, including The Wall Street Journal, MSN, Smart Money, NBC Universal and National Public Media. Operative is headquartered in New York City.

About American Media, Inc.
American Media, Inc. is the leading publisher of celebrity journalism and health and fitness magazines in the U.S. These include Star, Shape, Men’s Fitness, and Natural Health. In addition to print properties, AMI manages 15 different web sites. The company also owns Distribution Services, Inc., the country’s #1 in-store magazine merchandising company.

For Media Inquiries Contact:

Mike Finucane | Vice President of Sales

M: (203) 415-8894

mfinucane@sintecmedia.com