The evolution of retail media networks can be distilled into three phases: 

• Phase 1 - The Ad Network: Retailers monetized their audiences through advertising networks, with third-party tech and service providers at the forefront.

• Phase 2  - The Retail Media Network: Retailers develop stand-alone media networks, pushing tech and service providers into the background and leading their own strategies. We're currently in this phase.

• Phase 3 - The Rise of the Retail Marketing Network: Retailers create marketing platforms inclusive of all consumer touch points, with integrated features across them — including unified segmentation, aggregated attribution and automated cross-channel optimization, etc. This is the future

In a fast-paced interview with the Institute's Peter Breen, Inmar Intelligence's Spencer Baird will examine the rise of these new platforms. He'll help define what a retail marketing network is, discuss the types of new and exciting marketing programs it can support, and present real-world examples of cross-channel executions and their performance.