Ad Net Zero Strengthens Global Framework to Calculate Media Emissions

Ad Net Zero has published the first major update to the Ad Net Zero Global Media Sustainability Framework (GMSF), establishing voluntary standards in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions calculation and reporting for the advertising industry across six media channels (Digital, TV, OOH, Print, Audio and Cinema) with a clear methodology for brands to follow in their sustainability journey. The updated framework has been developed with the support of leading global advertisers and the world’s six largest advertising holding companies, as well as major media owners, tech companies and trade associations.

The GMSF now includes significant updates to the digital methodology, covering formulae, data levels, and default values, developed by IAB Europe's Methodology & Framework Working Group. This update also includes the formulae for Audio, Print, and Cinema channels which detail emissions from these channels. The framework provides the advertising supply chain with a clear methodology for estimating GHG emissions from the six main media channels generated by ad spend, ensuring consistency and comparability.

The goal is to help advertisers and their partners, through a consistent industry-wide framework (GMSF), understand and take positive action to reduce the GHG impact of their media plans – directly supporting Action 3 of the Ad Net Zero Action Plan.

The development work for this update has been supported by the Responsible Marketing Advisory and guided by a Climate Science Expert Group including representatives from the 4A’s, BL evolution, BrainOxygen, Climate Impact Partners, DIMPACT, IAB Europe, ISBA, L’Oréal, LVMH, Media Sense, NC State University, Persefoni, and The Climate Registry. IAB Europe's work was supported by its corporate members and National Federations, who collectively contributed their expertise to address current data gaps, align on guidance, and remove key estimation barriers in the digital space.

Sebastian Munden, Ad Net Zero global chair, said, “We believe tracking and calculation provide the best platform for reduction, helping to inform decisions which reduce waste without decreasing effectiveness. By doing this, we aim to make a significant difference to the carbon impact of the global advertising ecosystem.”

Dr. Bill Wescott, chair of the Climate Science Expert Group, said, “Having a framework that is transparent and consistent with existing climate standards is critical for advertisers who need to have reliable estimates of their advertising emissions, which surprisingly can be one of their top emitting activities. Advertisers need to have the same quality of data for advertising emissions as the rest of their GHG inventories which are increasingly part of regulatory and contractual compliance.”

Dimitris Beis, data analyst and sustainability lead, IAB Europe, said, “IAB Europe welcomes the GMSF v1.2 as a key milestone towards achieving robust and consistent estimation of GHG emissions from digital advertising. We thank our Methodology & Framework Working Group members for their vital contributions to the methodology of this actionable framework, and the Ad Net Zero team for their ongoing leadership in the development of the GMSF.”

How can the industry get involved?

Ad Net Zero has published v1.2 of the voluntary framework for open access here and is encouraging all interested parties to seek adoption at the highest level in their business and to ask the same of businesses up and down their supply chain. This means:

• Advertisers: You can align your carbon calculator with the GMSF or request that your partners, who estimate GHG emissions, use the GMSF. This will help provide consistent and comparable data across all your media plans and enable direct inclusion in your verified, publicly reported GHG inventories.
  
• Agencies: You can align your carbon calculators tools with the GMSF to help meet your clients’ needs. You can also make GHG emissions a consideration for all media plans, alongside other established media metrics.
  
• Media Owners: You have the ability to supply emissions data to advertisers and partners in as much granularity as possible. By adopting the GMSF, you can provide more consistent and transparent information to clients and support their reporting needs.
  

What does GMSF mean in practice?

As the GMSF is consistent with the Greenhouse Gas Protocol (GHGP) and international standards (e.g. ISO 14067), the GHG emissions data supports compliance with regulatory requirements similarly based on the GHGP. This means emissions estimates derived from the GMSF can be directly incorporated into your company-wide GHG inventory reporting. For an advertiser facing obligations to report its Scope 3 emissions (including those from its supply chain), this framework offers a standardised method to more reliably and transparently report their emissions data.

What are the key differences between v1.1 and v1.2?

The updated framework now includes digital data guidance (developed by IAB Europe's Framework & Methodology Working Group), making the digital formulae now fully operational. Measurement formulae for Audio, Print and Cinema have also been fully developed.

What are the benefits of the GMSF approach?

The standardised approach offered by the GMSF encourages a level playing field, helping advertisers, agencies, and media owners of all sizes access the same measurement and reporting capabilities. By removing the inconsistencies of different methodologies, the GMSF lowers the barrier to entry to sustainability reporting, enabling the entire advertising ecosystem to better understand the environmental impact of their media plans.

What is coming next?

The Ad Net Zero team will be available to provide briefings on this new version to all supporter organisations, and these will also be available open source on the Ad Net Zero Resources page. In addition, Ad Net Zero will be producing training materials specific to advertisers, agencies, and media owners to help educate and encourage adoption.

Critically, the operational versions for the remaining channels, along with the methodology for allocating corporate overhead emissions and estimating uncertainty of these estimations, will be released in v1.3 by the end of 2025 so that the GMSF can be practically implemented for all six channels.

Looking further ahead, two significant workstreams will be established for consultation with Ad Net Zero supporters and the GMSF Community:

1. Audit and Verification: to ensure that carbon calculators stating compliance with the GMSF have been third party certified, and also that the sustainability data supplied by media owners is accurate.

2. Data Collection and Access: Ad Net Zero will explore ways that emissions data can be supplied to a secure central source accessible to media buyers, creating a one-to-many approach for data supply vs a one-to-one solution.

Companies who contributed to the Audio, Print and Cinema formulae development include:

Carbon Quota, DIMPACT, DK, Global, Hearst Magazines, Impact Plus, Net Zero Media, News UK, Newsworks, Professional Publishers Association (PPA), Publicis Groupe, Royal Mail Marketreach, SAWA (Global Cinema Advertising Association), Shard Media Group, Spotify Advertising, Telegraph Media Group, The Guardian, and Whistl.

Companies who contributed to the Digital Data Guidance development led by IAB Europe include:

Alliance Digitale, BVDW, Cedara, DIMPACT, DK, Duration Media, Extreme Reach, Footsprint, FreeWheel, Good-Loop, Google, IAB Europe, IAB UK, Impact Plus, Meta, ProSiebenSat.1, PubMatic, Scope3, SeenThis and Teads.