The Canadian Out of Home Measurement Bureau (COMB) is taking steps to ensure the inventory in its system is accurate.

Starting this month, the organization will be sending emails to Canadian OOH companies to let them know if their circulation, population and in-market percentage figures match those COMB has on record. If there are discrepancies, COMB will ask the company to correct the number, then another audit will be done to make sure that figures on record for the company and the organization match.

In all, COMB will issue 60,000 audit requests to members in the first year of the program. As a condition of COMB membership, OOH companies must comply with the COMB Audit, as well as the timely correction of data errors.

Rosanne Caron, president, COMB, says the new auditing process is designed to provide OOH buyers with the assurance the inventory they are buying is 100% accurate. Prior to this system launch, COMB could only audit campaigns or conduct random checks. Caron says COMB plans to have the first Canadian OOH audit completed by June, when the numbers will be presented to the COMB board and alterations suggested for the next round of analysis.

Caron became president of COMB last month following news that Karen Best was retiring from the post.

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