The World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) has discontinued the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM), a move that has seen sustainability measurement company Scope3 step up to continue the development and rollout of standards.

Industry groups involved in the framework have confirmed that the development and rollout of standards will continue beyond GARM’s engagement. Ad Net Zero is taking ownership of the ongoing work to finalise the framework for each channel (outside of digital) and find a long-term place for this work to be housed.

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) will complete the methodology for digital. The existing working groups will restart on 12 September and aim to publish a completed and actionable digital framework by the end of the year.

Scope3 will introduce a preliminary view of the Global Media Sustainability Framework (GMSF) in their Collaborative Sustainability Platform (CSP), allowing anyone to compare numbers and see how their methodology aligns. References to the framework will be updated to ‘The Global Media Sustainability Framework’ or GMSF instead of GARM.

Scope3 will remain an active member of the IAB’s methodology working group to support the completion of the framework for digital. This move signifies a shift in the responsibility for sustainability standards in the media industry, with Scope3 and other industry groups taking the lead.