Sonder, the global authority in owned media valuation, today announces its U.S. launch with an AI-powered platform that has already unlocked more than $12 billion in previously untapped media value for brands, including American Express, 7-Eleven, Mastercard and Virgin.

The timing reflects a strategic shift happening across marketing departments. While CMOs increasingly recognize that their owned and operated channels hold significant value, uncertainty about how to maximize this leverage has left billions in potential revenue untapped. Sonder helps brands discover that their most valuable media inventory isn't what they're buying — it's what they already own.

“Ninety percent of owned media value is trapped offline,” said Sonder Co-Founder Jonathan Hopkins. “We're talking about in-store signage, loyalty app real estate, email ecosystems, even checkout screens — assets that brands control completely but have never properly valued or monetized.”

Already operating across 15 countries and 12 sectors, Sonder's platform uses AI to audit, price and optimize brand-owned media channels that traditional measurement overlooks. The platform's adoption across highly regulated sectors like finance and telecommunications demonstrates its compliance-ready approach.

The results are significant:

• Average $48 million in new annual revenue per client, each year, from previously underutilized owned assets
• Up to 20% savings on paid media spend through strategic substitution with owned inventory

The Owned Media Opportunity Hiding in Plain Sight

The scale of this opportunity is massive. The global owned media economy represents approximately $153.3 billion (according to WARC) in untapped value. Distinct from retail media and commerce media, Sonder defines owned media as an all-encompassing term for owned and operated media assets that attract an audience and can be leveraged for indirect or direct revenue. Examples include, websites, emails, instore screens, self-checkout screens, instore radio, catalogues, point of sale, apps, store activations, data and staff. 

“This isn't about building another walled garden,” Hopkins explained. “It's about helping businesses realize they're sitting on media inventory that's often more valuable and better performing than what they're paying for elsewhere.”

The approach helps relieve growing pressure on CMOs to demonstrate ROI while preparing for AI-driven marketing disruption. Rather than compete with existing ad platforms, Sonder provides the valuation framework and management tools to make owned media a measurable, optimizable revenue center.

AI-Powered Valuation Meets Market Reality

Sonder's platform offers proprietary benchmarking across its $12+ billion managed media portfolio, along with market-based rate cards that enable direct monetization without platform intermediaries. Sonder analyzes performance patterns, supply constraints and demand signals to establish defensible pricing for owned media inventory.

Key platform capabilities include:

• Asset discovery and audit of all owned touchpoints
• Independently verified valuation based on comparative market data
• AI-driven performance optimization through real-time campaign management
• Revenue attribution linking owned media to business outcome

U.S. Launch Includes Industry Intelligence

With the launch in the U.S., Sonder provides findings of its Owned Media Global Insights Report, featuring sector benchmarks, case studies and market trend analysis, taking a macro view, examining the global landscape, key developments, the emerging players and taking a stab at what the future might hold for the sector.

The report reveals how leading companies are transforming underused media assets into high-value revenue streams, with particular insights for retail, finance, travel, and telecommunications sectors.

“Managing data, delivering growth and preparing for the next wave of AI disruption — marketers today face more responsibility than ever," noted Hopkins. “Sonder future-proofs the CMO role by giving them the tools, intelligence and frameworks to monetize their own ecosystems with absolute confidence.”