ITV names Auto Match launch brands; Sophus3 partnership
October 9, 2025
Automotive companies including Range Rover, Volkswagen, Audi, Suzuki and Polestar are among the first brands to use ITV’s new addressable advertising solution for car manufacturers – Auto Match.
Auto Match, which was announced in March this year, is an advertising solution in partnership with Carwow, the UK’s largest online destination for car changing. Available through ITV’s advanced self-serve programmatic platform Planet V, it allows car advertisers to connect with known active car buyers through ITVX.
ITV has also partnered with Sophus3, the car industry web analytics company, to provide insights and measurement. Results from initial Auto Match campaigns show that it drives more web visits, creates a stronger intent to buy, and narrows a car buyer’s shortlist.
Sophus3’s technology, which partners with 26 car manufacturers, matches known ITVX Auto Match-exposed viewers to ensuing behaviours on both car advertisers’ websites and on Carwow. A range of key performance behaviours are analysed, including visits, configurations, and test drive enquiries, providing advertisers with a deeper understanding of campaign effectiveness and return on investment.
Jay Rajdev, Controller of Advanced Advertising, ITV, commented: “Car advertisers have successfully built long-term fame with TV advertising for many years. With Auto Match, our aim was to understand how these advertisers can also deploy that powerful creative asset to drive shorter-term performance. This partnership with Sophus3 provides invaluable insights on car buyer journeys and the impact of Auto Match within these. It’s a testament to the strength of Auto Match that leading brands have signed up to be part of it and crucially, are already seeing results from tangible online actions including significant web traffic increases.”
Steve Machin, Head of Media Partnerships at Sophus3, added: “This partnership marks a significant step forward in how car brands can view and measure the impact of TV advertising. For the first time, working with ITV, we’re able to independently assess how ad exposure influences consumer buying behaviour. These impressive results already show that smart use of data can drive more intent-based actions than previously thought possible.”
Auto Match is powered by Carwow’s first-party data. By securely matching Carwow’s audience data with ITVX’s registered users, Auto Match enables precise audience targeting. This allows car manufacturers to reach over 1.3 million known active new car buyers and measure post-ad exposure uplift on key metrics such as website traffic, car configurations and sales.
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