IQT vs Utiq

Sanoma Transforms Customer Data into Targeted Advertising Currency

Finnish media conglomerate Sanoma is shifting its business model from a traditional publisher to a data-driven platform. The company's strategy involves leverage of user-controlled personal accounts (Sanoma Account) that allow readers to decide what data is shared with advertisers. Financially, Sanoma reported a 1% decline in H1 2026 revenues to 555.8 million euros, though adjusted operating profit increased by 7% to 46.4 million euros. On the adtech side, Sanoma Custom Audiences allows brands to integrate their first-party data using the Custobar Customer Data Platform (CDP). This integration enables targeted display and video campaigns, as well as AI-powered lookalike modeling. In a highlighted case study, retailer Scandinavian Outdoor collaborated with consulting firm Columbia Road to deploy pre-trained AI agents within Custobar, automating customer and sales insights.

• Sanoma's H1 2026 revenue slightly declined by 1% to 555.8 million euros, while adjusted operating profit rose 7% to 46.4 million euros.
• Sanoma provides a personal data control center (Sanoma Account) allowing users to decide which targeting data is shared with advertisers.
• Sanoma Custom Audiences integrates advertisers' first-party CRM data through the Custobar CDP to match contacts and run targeted campaigns.

Identity has Outgrown the Media Plan

By Mike Piperakis, Chief Technology Officer at Utiq Identity used to have a fairly contained role in digital advertising. Buyers wanted to know whether they could recognise an audience, reach enough of it to make a campaign viable and continue doing so as familiar browser identifiers disappeared.

Window for Open-Web ID Push Is Shrinking

Commentary by Klaus Janke (Horizont) warns that the time to deploy deterministic identity solutions in the open web is running out. The article argues that practical adoption of deterministic identifiers such as NetID and Utiq is necessary for the open web to preserve reach and to sustain quality journalism as a pillar of democratic public life. The piece frames the issue as urgent: without widespread implementation of shared identifiers, publishers and the open web risk declining monetization and audience measurement capabilities.

• Opinion piece authored by Klaus Janke published on 2026-08-19.
• The article calls for practical deployment of deterministic identifiers such as NetID and Utiq for the open web.
• The author links adoption of identity solutions to preserving reach for publishers and sustaining quality journalism.