From Lotame's perspective, what do you see as the biggest opportunity for brands within programmatic marketing over the next 12 months, and why?

The biggest opportunity for brands in programmatic over the next 12 months is scaling identity driven audiences across all buying environments (open web, CTV, PMPs, and curated supply) and optimising to outcomes rather than channels. The next 12 months favour brands that stop buying "inventory" and start buying audiences with identity allowing those audiences to scale, move, and perform across every programmatic environment.

What's one misconception brands still have about data and identity in programmatic that you think needs to change?

One misconception that really needs to change is that "identity" in programmatic is just about replacing the cookie with a single ID (email, UID, login), rather than about audience continuity and outcomes across environments. Identity isn't about choosing the "right" ID, but rather ensuring the audience travels with you, wherever media does.

Where are you currently seeing the biggest disconnect between brands' expectations and the reality of data-driven marketing?

The biggest disconnect I'm seeing is that brands expect data driven marketing to deliver immediate, deterministic certainty while the reality is probabilistic, fragmented, and operationally complex. In other words, brands expect precision and the ecosystem delivers advantage through orchestration. Data driven marketing isn't about knowing everything; it's about being consistently less wrong, faster, and at greater scale than before.

What would make attending Programmatic Pioneers Summit a "must-attend" for you this year rather than a "nice to have"?

Programmatic Pioneers becomes a must attend this year if it helps me leave with clearer decisions, not just broader awareness. If it helps brands decide what to stop, what to double down on, and what uncertainty to finally make peace with, then we have a winner!