By Charles Lee Mathews. As cookies crumble and privacy rules tighten, MTN’s telco-powered platform offers brands a smarter, privacy-first way to connect with high-value audiences.
At a time when brands are struggling with cookie deprecation and data privacy regulations, MTN South Africa has launched MTN Ads, a first-party data-driven advertising platform. Built on the telco’s vast data ecosystem, MTN Ads offers a compliant way to reach high-value audiences.
Advertising’s seismic seachange
The advertising industry is undergoing a seismic shift, says Jason Probert, general manager of digital services at MTN South Africa, who heads up MTN Ads. “The loss of third-party cookies has removed between 50% and 60% of addressable audiences,” says Probert. Publishers, particularly local ones, are losing revenue as global platforms dominate ad spend.
Telcos like MTN, however, are uniquely positioned to provide an alternative. “We know our subscribers and have built trust with them. With over 4 trillion data records collected monthly, we can offer advertisers privacy-first targeting that’s effective and compliant,” Probert explains.
First-party data solution
MTN Ads uses first-party data — aggregated and anonymised — to build audience segments based on user behaviour, in full compliance with South Africa’s Protection of Personal Information Act (PoPIA). Instead of tracking individuals, its AI-powered Addressable Audiences lets brands target groups based on attributes like ARPU (average revenue per user), device type, and location.
The platform also includes a User Recognition tool that helps publishers build richer audience profiles across devices. While cookies struggle with cross-device tracking, MTN Ads verifies users across platforms to create a single user record — enabling more accurate targeting, says Probert.
For publishers, this is a step-change. They can now combine website and usage data into a single profile, offering advertisers a 360-degree view of their audience. “It’s about enhancing their ability to sell higher-value ads with better targeting and profiling,” Probert says.
Empowering local publishers
One of the most compelling aspects of MTN Ads is its potential to level the playing field for local publishers. “The media industry has been suffering because of the dominance of Google and Meta,” Probert observes. “They’re taking more and more of local advertising budgets, leaving very little for local publishers to build a business.”
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By providing publishers access to rich, privacy-compliant data, MTN Ads aims to help them compete more effectively. “We believe this will allow local publishers to make some real money,” Probert says. “Even if it’s just 5% more, that’s doubling their existing revenue.”
Privacy-first approach
Privacy is a cornerstone of MTN Ads. Probert stresses that the solution is designed to be fully compliant with privacy regulations. “We never share actual data,” he says. “Everything is aggregated and anonymised. We’ve spent three years ensuring that this meets all PoPI requirements.”
This commitment to privacy extends to the user experience. “Customers have to opt in, just like they do with cookies,” Probert explains. “But unlike cookies, this solution offers real value to both advertisers and consumers.”
Future of advertising
Looking ahead, Probert envisions a future where advertising is both hyper-personalised and privacy-conscious. “I think we’re moving towards a world where customers have more control over the ads they see,” he says. “At the same time, AI will enable hyper-personalisation, allowing brands to offer different deals and be creative to different micro-segments.”
He also sees a growing role for local publishers in this ecosystem. “We’re exploring the idea of a South African publisher DSP (demand side platform), where advertisers can buy local inventory,” Probert reveals. “I believe agencies should almost be obliged to spend a percentage of their budget on local publishers. This is crucial for our democracy and for building a thriving local media ecosystem.”
Strengthening SA’s ad ecosystem
MTN Ads marks a shift in how targeted advertising works in South Africa. By combining telco data with privacy-first technology, it gives brands, publishers, and agencies a way to meet both compliance and performance goals.
For media planners and strategists, the value is clear: sharper audience targeting, stronger support for local publishers, and a more sustainable path in a cookieless world.
Charles Lee Mathews is a senior editor to MarkLives MEDIA and a senior writer to MarkLives.com, as well as co-founder of The Writers, a writing consultancy.
