Have you ever wondered who handles all the behind-the-scenes work involved in bringing your favourite TV commercials and videos to life? Meet XR, one of the biggest names you’ve probably never heard of in the world of digital video delivery and measurement.
The Company is undergoing a transformative rebranding from its former name Extreme Reach. Alongside this exciting change, they have made a series of strategic hires, including Jo Kinsella, a respected software veteran from Innovid and TVSquared, who has been appointed as the president of XR Source.
XR Source represents the company’s innovative platform for empowering and analyzing creative and media on a global scale.
The launch of this platform coincides with the unveiling of XR’s new branding at the prestigious CES event this week.
XR Source is specifically designed to cater to the needs of brand and agency clients, offering the seamless delivery and tracking of creative assets across diverse screens.
Notably, XR boasts an impressive reach, delivering video creative content across 19,000 TV and digital platforms in 130 countries, accounting for a staggering $150 billion in spending.
Kinsella’s appointment as president of Source comes after her departure from Innovid subsequent to its acquisition of TVSquared, a company she co-founded, back in 2022.
Her extensive experience in the measurement and ad tech industries makes her an invaluable addition to the XR team.
According to CEO Louisa Wong, the rebranding of XR is a pivotal step following a period of integration efforts aimed at providing clients with a unified platform.
Wong deliberately selected Kinsella for her esteemed reputation and sought her guidance throughout this transformative process.
Wong is confident that Kinsella’s leadership will greatly benefit the team, clients, partners, and investors, particularly in terms of executing the company’s strategic vision.
The decision to rebrand XR stems from Wong’s own experience when she was in talks with Extreme Reach before assuming the CEO role in May.
Initially unfamiliar with the company, she found it difficult to comprehend the complex and extensive nature of its business.
However, after delving into the investor deck and exploring the website, Wong realized that Extreme Reach, now XR, played a fundamental role in video production and delivery for the ad industry.
The company offers a comprehensive suite of solutions, encompassing production capabilities, market ad placement advisory, rights management, and delivery services.
All these services are consolidated into a single enterprise platform that, as Wong emphasizes, “democratizes access to understanding what the creative workflow looks like from inception.” Moreover, XR’s expansive dataset enables the provision of valuable insights into industry-wide performance, diversity, equity, and inclusion, both on and off-camera.
With their extensive reach, XR serves as the trusted partner for all Super Bowl ads and collaborates with over 90% of the top 200 advertisers.
The vast amount of data generated through this “extreme reach” allows XR Source to derive insights that enhance creative and media efficiency and impact.
Kinsella emphasizes the importance of focusing on the content within the delivery, rather than being fixated on the delivery mechanism itself.
While digital ad serving has become a highly competitive space, with Google dominating through low-cost CPMs, XR distinguishes itself by seamlessly bridging the gap between production and media.
This unique capability, combined with their ability to link creative assets and the vast generated data, empowers XR to trace the entire journey from initial idea to consumer engagement.
To further support brands in understanding their historical context, XR Source incorporates a content catalog dating back 50 years.
To strengthen their leadership team, XR recently welcomed Simon Sikorski as president of global operations, Donna Kladis as chief information and security officer, Meredith Brace as chief marketing officer, and Eric Rubenstein as chief legal officer.
These appointments followed the earlier additions of Wong as CEO and Chandler Bigelow as chief financial officer in 2023.
The rebranding of XR signifies an exciting new chapter for the company, as they continue to revolutionize the video technology and measurement landscape on a global scale.
Source: Adage
