AdTech News And Editorial
Facebook Yanks Ad-Buying Service Test Because Of Fraud
From the article:
In fact, we removed over 75% of the volume coming from our exchange by turning off publishers circulating bad inventory into LiveRail. We knew that in good conscience, we couldn’t sell what Atlas and our people-based measurement told us was valueless.
It's Time For Ad Tech To Evolve
From the article:
The problem isn’t that advertising online is a problem, it’s that the industry has seized the opportunity to squeeze more revenue out of the margins by feeding the glorious data-beast.
Is The Ad Tech Bubble About To Burst?
Pretty damning article from Mark Duffy at Digiday. It's clear the the ad tech shakeout is well underway and time for the real companies in ad tech to stand up and help push us forward.
Here’s a working, real-world definition <for "ad tech">: a series of carefully interwoven lies. Somewhat amazingly (at least to me), these sham-shilling ad techies have somewhat successfully inserted their hooey between brands and publishers.
Medium Is About To Court Mid-Tier and Lower-Tier Publishers With Paywalls And Ads
In an interview with The BBC, Ev Williams cites the end of this quarter as a possible launch data for early paywall and ad tech integrations into Medium.
TubeMogul Erects Signs Outside Top NYC Agencies That Accuse Google Of Being Anticompetitive.
TubeMogul is highlighting a point of view that bubbles below the surface in the online ad world--that Google operates as a “walled garden.” That means, in the eyes of some ad buyers and marketing executives, that Google uses its clout to force brands to buy ads using Google’s technology and rules, whether they like it or not.
Ad Blocking
Adblock Plus Cites Trademark Violations To Get Magic Adblock Removed From Apple's App Store
An ad blocker blocking an ad blocker, oh the irony...
The developer behind a new ad blocker, Magic Adblock, claims Adblock Plus used a "ridiculous" trademark complaint to force the app out of Apple's App Store.
UK Culture Secretary Calls Ad Blocking "Modern-Day Protection Racket".
Harsh words, but Ad Blockers could be managed by Al Capone and it still wouldn't matter. Consumers have already voted. Ad blocking isn't going away. It's time for solutions, not pointing fingers.
Ad Blockers Are Making Money Off Ads (And Tracking, Too)
Sure, ad blockers are making cash from publisher content, but Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest are all making money from publisher content too, so why aren't publishers complaining about that?
Ad Blocking Is A Small Part Of The Bigger Question, Who Controls The Media?
From the article:
Adblocking is alarming for publishers, because their business models have become overly reliant on intrusive advertising carrying heaps of tracking code which upsets users and, more importantly, costs them more money (data) on their mobile phones. Seeing annoying ads is essentially a bearable irritation; having to pay for something you haven’t asked for is enough to motivate people to download adblocking software. If adblocking becomes routine at network level as Israeli company Shine’s deal with 3 would make it, then only publishers with special exemption status would ever be able to show ads (hence Whittingdale’s protection racket analogy).
The New York Times Begins Testing Ad Blocking Approaches | Digital - AdAge
From the article:
"The best things aren't free," the message read. "You currently have an ad blocker installed. Advertising helps us fund our journalism. To continue to enjoy the Times, please support us in one of the following ways."
What about malvertising, data privacy, and horrendous load times? Ad blocking is about more than just the blocking of advertisements.
Programmatic
Marketers Flock to Programmatic Ads Despite Concerns About Fraud and Transparency
The study, which polled 128 marketers and was conducted by research firm Forrester, found that 79% of advertisers have made programmatic ad buys over the past year. That is up significantly from a similar study that was done in 2014, which found only 35% of the advertisers had used programmatic buying.
Brands Are Not Taking Programmatic In-House
From the article:
But what started as a trickle has yet to turn into a flood — and most likely won’t anytime soon. Taking programmatic in-house sounds good in theory (and in “top ad tech predictions” posts), but it’s messy in reality. If brands want to execute programmatic media plan on their own, they need to gather tremendous amounts of data, hire experienced staff and put considerable amount of work into setting up a campaign. For many brands, this is a bridge too far.
Podcasting
One In Five Americans Now Listen To Podcasts
From 12 percent in 2010 to 21 percent in 2016. Podcasts are on fire, and the growth doesn't seem to be slowing,
Security
Widespread XSS Vulnerabilities In Ad Network Code Affecting Top Tier Publishers, Retailers
From the article:
This industry-wide problem serves as a great example of how 3rd-party components can compromise the security of an otherwise secure site. Despite best efforts to secure web applications, a great trust is placed in 3rd-parties whose code is integrated into them. And to regular users, this probably seems like yet another reason to run an Ad Blocker.