Websend, the leading web-based display advertising pre-flight and delivery company announced that Vio Worldwide, one of the world’s largest providers of advertising delivery solutions, has licensed the innovative Websend browser-based solution for its entire UK, North American and Canadian operations.

Websend is part of Omnilab Media, Australia and New Zealand’s largest privately owned vertically integrated media company. Grant Schuetrumpf, General Manager, Media Innovation & Technology, Omnilab Media said, “Vio’s decision to adopt Websend as its cornerstone technology further cements Websend’s strategic international expansion. Vio and Websendshare a mutual belief and direction for display advertising management and distribution. With this new agreement advertisers will be able to reach over 10,000 publications across UK, USA, Canada, Australia & New Zealand through a single web based interface. Vio is the advertising service of choice for many of the world’s blue chip advertisers and publishers and our partnership with them makes that choice an even more formidable one. Websend has grown primarily based on its unique and innovative R&D and efficient integration of technology. This is an approach we are continuing to invest heavily in.”

Chris Friend, MD of Vio Worldwide added, “The partnership with Websend is an important strategic decision for Vio and will give the advertising and publishing industries the most powerful and flexible ad management and delivery solution possible. We needed to fundamentally change our platform to support our rapidly growing customer base, and their desire to move to a SaaS (Software as a Service) environment. Websend is technically very advanced and by implementing it as our core technology we can bring considerable benefits and value to advertisers and publishers in a highly automated web-based advertising pre-flight and delivery system. The new
platform gives us a powerful foundation to develop the Vio service to meet our customers’ rapidly developing media needs and is backed by Websend’s considerable R&D capability.”

The exclusive agreement allows Vio to integrate Websend and effect a major upgrade to its core print advertising pre-flight, proofing and delivery technology that will have a significant impact for its customers worldwide and the Vio business as a whole. Tens of thousands of users around the world rely daily on Websend and Vio to streamline and enhance their digital supply chain. Advertisers and their
suppliers use both companies’ solutions for automating ad creation, proofing and delivery; and publishers benefit from ad checking and managed reception.

Websend is a fully centralised web-based solution where all users find it very easy to get immediate use of the system from any web browser with no downloads or desktop software required. Advertisers simply log on and follow the simple steps to upload ads, preflight, size check, proof and send to the selected magazines and newspapers, ensuring that every ad meets the correct publishers specification. The service can also provide automated corrections specific to publication specifications including ink weight conversion and image resolutions, which are all controlled through the one interface.

Grant Schuetrumpf concluded, “The new Websend-enabled Vio service will bring further significant financial benefits to publishers. Websend’s XML, XMP, JDF, AdsML and PDF/X compliant architecture will enable publishers to integrate ad delivery directly into their internal workflows, booking and billing systems. In turn, this will directly help to avoiding costly errors, disputes and time-consuming reconciliation. Omnilab Media and Websend’s aim is to continue to invest in more global partnerships and we will have more news in
the coming months.”

The Websend Vio agreement is effective immediately and Vio will complete the migration of its technologies and publisher portals to the Websend platform by March 2009.

About Websend

Websend is one of the Omnilab Media portfolio of companies. Founded in 2002 by Peter Lamont it is the advanced web-based pre-flight and delivery solution that offers comprehensive PDF preflighting, tracking and distribution services for advertisers and publishers. Effectively, Websend preflights an artwork’s digital DNA and puts it through its paces on behalf of publishers. Websend also works towards meeting industry standards including XML, XMP, JDF, AdsML, and PDF/X. Websend also publishes an API for seamless 3rd party system integration. www.websend.com.au

About Omnilab Media Group

Omnilab Media is Australia and New Zealand’s largest privately owned vertically integrated media company, incorporating four key media arms: content development, professional media services, innovation & technology, and content sales & distribution partnerships. Omnilab Media delivers, worldclass solutions for our clients, employing over 500 of the very best creative and technical talent across a portfolio of 16 media businesses. www.omnilab.com

About VIO Worldwide

Vio Worldwide provides solutions to streamline and brand digital supply chains. The tools to achieve this include: customer-facing service portals; automated advertising creation; digital asset management; automated, remote preflighting solutions; colour-managed soft proofing; standards based integration of business and operations systems, including insertion management and booking reconciliation; securely managed, tracked and automated online delivery; and innovative network design and outsourced 24/7 network management. Vio Worldwide leads the way in technology standards, participating in XML standards setting bodies for online and print media. It has offices in the U.S., U.K., Israel and France. In the US, the company does business as AdSEND, which specializes in the development of
solutions that link workflow partners in innovative ways that allow them to not only exchange files, but also vital information about those files. Vio Worldwide is part of LMS Capital plc (www.lmscapital.com), a UK-based quoted company with over £250 million in assets. www.vio.com