As a whole, retail media’s growth has never been stronger, but the sector has never been more in pieces. With upwards of 200 retail media networks operating globally, brands and marketers have to navigate a fragmented, topsy-turvy landscape of disconnected digital and physical platforms, inconsistent formats, and opaque measurement standards.

What’s the cost of this fragmentation? For brands and marketers, it’s the struggle to craft a unified retail media strategy across online, off-site and in-store channels. For retailers, it means missed opportunities to monetize their networks—especially in brick-and-mortar stores, where 80% of retail spending occurs but only 2% of retail media budgets are invested.

And this fragmentation is poised to cost the sector by slowing investment, predicts Collin Colburn, Vice President of Commerce and Retail at the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB). “We are hitting a plateau at the moment,” he explains. “That naturally happens because the market says, ‘We’re investing a lot. Let’s recalibrate. Let’s see where there is waste.’”

But in order to take stock, key stakeholders desperately need data on what’s working and what’s not. That’s where the IAB is racing to the rescue with a push for standardized measurement frameworks, enhanced collaboration models, and increased industry-wide transparency. Together, these initiatives could transform retail media from a jumble of fragmented networks into a cohesive, data-driven media ecosystem.

Measurement: The Missing Piece of the Puzzle

It’s a classic apples-to-oranges problem. How can you compare the ROI of an ad on social media, at a DOOH digital mall kiosk and on a digital screen in a physical store, long a “black box” in data measurement. “There hasn’t been a serious look at measurement in the store ever, not in a way that we’ve taken measurement seriously on the digital front,” Collin notes.

But the IAB is aiming to fix that. It recently released comprehensive retail media standards covering ad formats, store zones, and measurement guidelines. “One of the big challenges on the brand side, especially as in-store media formats roll out, is how do I justify this spend?” Collin explains. By standardizing formats and measurement, the IAB will finally put in place that missing piece of the retail media puzzle.

Industry studies reinforce the urgency of standardized measurement. IAB Europe’s Attitudes to Retail Media Report 2025 reveals that 78% of brands and agencies identify measurement as the area most requiring standardization. It also shows that, despite 79% of buyers prioritizing reaching shoppers at the point of sale, nearly half of them (48%) report zero digital advertising spend in stores.

Collin admits that technical standards alone aren’t sufficient to win buy-in across the entire retail media ecosystem. “What will help with adoption of these standards is a set of guiding principles that we all can sign on to,” he says. 

Heading into 2026, the IAB plans to nurture these principles by identifying common ground among stakeholders at industry events. At the Connected Commerce Summit in New York on September 9, it gathered nearly 600 industry professionals to discuss measurement standards and long-term planning strategies. Next, its Retail Media Summit in Amsterdam on September 24 will seek to build consensus on standards with European stakeholders.

Collaboration & Transparency: Rethinking Partnerships

The IAB sees the lack of open, effective collaboration between stakeholders as one of the root causes of retail media fragmentation in today’s fast-evolving omnichannel ecosystem. To that end, the IAB plans to release a best-practices guide for retail media partnerships focused on “transparency, collaboration and mutual accountability.”

It’s a bid to fundamentally redesign how retail media partnerships work. “The folks that are actually managing retail media dollars need to be at the table for negotiations, not sitting behind the wall getting orders after agreements are signed,” Collin stresses. The new collaboration framework seeks to include third-party ad tech, mar-tech, and measurement providers in partnership discussions from the get-go, rather than as afterthoughts.

The IAB’s standardized partnership framework takes its inspiration in part from European markets, where retailers often own the entire in-store activation process, from procurement to installation. In the U.S., however, brands typically manage in-store activation themselves. “The E.U. model might be more efficient and easier for U.S. brands,” Collin suggests. By giving over some operational control to retailers, U.S. brands could focus more on strategy than execution, he explains.

Increasing transparency in what data is shared between retailers, marketers and brands will also boost partnerships’ effectiveness for all parties. “We need to show brands the unique value prop of in-store media,” Collin explains. “It is perfectly clear on the retailer side what the value prop is, but it’s not as clear on the brand side.”

The push for greater transparency aims to lift the curtain on how retail media delivers value beyond traditional advertising channels. This includes showing the halo effects of retail media investment, where advertising on one platform drives sales across multiple touchpoints and channels.

Will the IAB’s ambitious plan bring together the fragmented pieces of the retail media ecosystem overnight? Not likely, admits Collin, who sees a five- to 10-year window for full orchestration of the online, offsite and in-store domains. But with measurement standardization, improved collaboration, and greater transparency, the IAB is starting to bring all the key members of the retail media orchestra together. It’s the first, crucial step to letting them play in unison.