IBM has joined forces with online news outlet Salon Media and non-profit blockchain standards consortium AdLedger to pilot a blockchain project that aims to bring more transparency to digital advertising.

The Campaign Reconciliation project will use blockchain in a bid to improve the digital advertising process by maintaining a record of contractual conditions, publisher payments, and details about impressions.

“This is not only a proof of concept for what blockchain is capable of, but how it can help companies make informed decisions about the rules and standards needed for a transparent, shared ledger,” said Christiana Cacciapuoti, executive director of AdLedger. “With the digital advertising industry plagued by fraud, transparency, and brand safety issues, we’re using blockchain to indicate to everyone that there is light at the end of the tunnel.”

The project is part of the AdLedger consortium’s goal of creating a set of rules and standards for blockchain advertising. It will be underpinned by the IBM Blockchain Platform, while Salon is onboard with an eye on taking back control of its publisher inventory.

“The digital advertising supply chain is notoriously broken. Dimes on the dollar that are lost today can be traced back to issues with transparency and trust,” said Chad Andrews, global solutions leader for advertising and blockchain at IBM. “To effectively work together, marketers and publishers need to know how media is purchased, how it’s being delivered and that payment is being made. Blockchain can restore confidence in digital advertising and help advertising dollars go further by creating greater transparency –providing a single source of truth –across all members of the supply chain.”