Market demand for media owners in the United Arab Emirates to have their titles independently audited has "passed the point of no return" according to a case study of the CASTOR initiative, the region's Circulation Audit Steering Organisation, published this week.

The document, entitled "GOOD FIGURES DON'T NEED PADDING, How The UAE Successfully Tackled Resistance To Circulation Auditing" reports that "it is now only a matter of time before it [circulation auditing] achieves critical mass and the last bastions of resistance will have little option but to accede to market forces." The document is being presented at the International Advertising Association at this week's IAA World Congress in Washington DC.

The Study aims to assist other IAA chapters seeking to introduce independent media measurement in their own markets with a blueprint that they can follow. This has involved a range of initiatives from CASTOR threatening to cut back advertising spend in unaudited titles to it communicating the benefits of independent auditing through a series of meetings in the main Middle East publishing centres to reach out to affected parties and enlist their support. CASTOR has found, though, that a desire to be seen as subscribing to internationally-recognised standards in equally prevalent. In addition, BPA Worldwide is supporting the process with an ongoing outreach programme involving training and education for publishers, advertisers, media buyers and planners on the value of audited data as a business tool and as effective information in the planning of marketing and advertising strategies.

CASTOR represents 30 of the Gulf region's biggest advertising spenders and was assigned to promote the widespread adoption of circulation auditing as part of a drive by the International Advertising Association's Dubai Chapter and the Advertisers' Business Group for the GCC to raise standards and professional ethics in the industry. BPA Worldwide, the global auditor of media, is the only specialist organisation to obtain approval from CASTOR to conduct audits in the region. It currently has more than 80 Middle East titles in membership, including newspapers, business and consumer magazines and an internet portal, compared with just 20 in April 2006, and an increasing number of Arabic titles.

In the document, CASTOR stresses that "the more titles are audited, the more advertisers would be confident of investing in print media, giving a clearer picture if the overall health of the sector."

"Our experience in the UAE confirms what we have seen elsewhere. Market forces eventually hold sway and demand for audits overcomes vested interests, special arrangements and anything which gets in the way of the most informed and effective way of deploying an advertising budget," explains Glenn Hansen, President and CEO, BPA Worldwide.

"BPA has embraced the importance of adapting to the particular social and cultural needs of the region but, crucially, has also remained firm in its insistence that international standards are adhered to in order to give the region credibility in the eyes of international and global advertisers."

BPA Worldwide established an office in Dubai in June 2006 and its Middle East Advisory Board provides input to BPA from local buyers and sellers. The current membership of 15 people comprises eight representing advertisers and agencies and seven media owners. BPA is currently investing $1.5 million in new online software that will assist in BPA audits worldwide while offering live assistance to circulation managers.

The study concludes that many publishers have shown "enthusiastic willingness to support independent auditing". It says that as competition for advertising budgets intensifies, publishers have recognised that they can gain a marketing edge by providing verified figures, even if those numbers are not as impressive as they would like.

 "Needless to say, BPA Worldwide is ready to work with any IAA chapter keen to utitlise the GCC experience to deliver independent media measurement in their home market," adds Hansen.