FreeWheel is integrating Adap.tv's programmatic reserved technology with its FourFronts solution, so advertisers can use their proprietary data to buy select online video ad inventory from premium content providers.The integration is meant to support a trial announced earlier this month under which ABC and ABC Family initially, will allow select ad buyers to access reserved inventory.

The audience reserved concept means content providers balance ad buyers' desire for targeting certain audiences with their own desire to manage their ad inventory and protect their current direct sales channel and rates.

The integration solution will create a "data escrow" environment, which content providers can use to forecast and reserve ad inventory. This means the ad buyers are able to maintain the privacy of their proprietary data, while content providers retain full control over their inventory, keeping it away from real-time bidding marketplaces while still tapping into some of programmatic's transactional efficiency.

As I wrote about the trial a couple of weeks ago, it is a carefully calibrated move to respond to the ad buying community's interest in programmatic and test some of its benefits, while not upsetting any of the equilibrium of the multi-billion dollar TV ad business.

Ad agencies Optimedia, MAGNA GLOBAL and Starcom MediaVest were also announced as participants in the upcoming trial.