A host of ad tech platforms is helping marketers break down the boundaries between buying TV ads, VOD ads, digital video ads and all the other flavors of moving-image ads. That’s the topic that seems set to dominate the upcoming DMEXCO digital marketing expo in Cologne.

Speaking with Beet.TV in this video interview, FreeWheel marketplaces GM James Rooke channels marketers’ concern: “How am I going to unify my (advertising) inventory to get greater scale … regardless of screen?

“You may have different measurement providers for OTT versus for a set-top box environment – how do you stitch all that together? It’s very fragmented right now. (But) things are moving at light speed.”

For its part, FreeWheel recently tied up with Canoe Ventures, which helps pump ads in to US cable operators’ VOD platforms, to begin combining the buying process for ads across VOD, set-top box and internet video.

“It opens up a large amount of long-form premium video inventory for the programmers to be able to monetize,” Rooke says. “As buyer concern increases about inventory sets that may not be considered premium, set-top box is a fraud-fee, 100%-viewable in a leanback engaged environment… it’s the best stuff there is.”

FreeWheel is a wholly-owned unit of Comcast.

This interview is part of a series of videos leading up to the DMEXCO conference in Cologne. The series is presented by 4C + Teletrax.