Branded content is quickly becoming one of the best ways for brands and people to connect. While still in the arena of advertising, as long as it is clearly identified that the content is coming from a brand, whether through airing their YouTube channel or noted with a disclaimer, it widely accepted and embraced by audiences, publishers, regulators and beyond.

While the term “branded content” is widely used across the advertising industry, its definition is presently a work in progress. And without a concrete understanding of what the practice entails, the U.S. sector of the industry has, to date, been unable to establish official regulations in the same way that it has for traditional advertising models.

Regardless, organizations such as the Federal Trade Commission, the American Society of Magazine Editors, and the Interactive Advertising Bureau have respectively proposed ‘best practices’ for the creation and implementation of branded content. And while their opinions differ in numerous respects, one principle remains at the forefront of each proposition: that transparency is key to the success of content marketing.

As with traditional print, television, out of home, and even banner advertising, it has been proven that branded content must be utterly conspicuous in order to foster a relationship between the affiliated brand and audience that is grounded in trust.

And until a set of concrete regulations is created and enforced, it continues to be up to creative shops, themselves, to balance absolute creative freedom with the responsibility to self-regulate.

YouTube, Burn owned and operated channels, Formula One Grand Prix in Brazil.

Burn innovation influenced the sport overall. Human Ignition sparked an interest within the automotive industry. The series was later on considered for TV - where networks reached out voicing their interest on extending the series.