Ex-Spot Runner Creative Chief Takes Former Employer Head On With AgencyDivision

We’ve written many times about Spot Runner, the Los Angeles startup that is trying to apply web advertising techniques to TV, after the company was embroiled in controversy over the past year amidst massive layoffs and an alleged “pump and dump” scheme. WPP sued the Spot Runner for securities fraud and the lawsuit was later dismissed. It looks like some good may have come out of the mess. Simon Foster, Spot Runner’s head of creative operations, has started AgencyDivision, an ad agency that wants to help tech companies start TV ad campaigns.

Foster claims that his team was responsible for nearly 90 percent of Spot Runner’s revenue over the past three years and saw an opportunity to flee the sinking ship. He took several of his team members and set of AgencyDivision, which takes a spin on the ‘open source’ advertising model. The startup aims to help launch Internet businesses into TV advertising through highly analytical and ROI positive TV campaigns. Foster says the agency just completed a TV commercial for one of Spot Runner’s largest clients (which is unnamed) and expects to see more clients cross over.

Fosters’ AgencyDivision team basically had a similar role at Spot Runner, where they helped launch TV advertising campaigns ranging from local mom-and-pops to many nationally recognizable brands. The startup just launched recently, so it should be interesting to see if AgencyDivision can actually steal some of Spot Runner’s