IAB Tech Lab is doing its bit to ensure ads remain targeted. They released a specification of Seller Defined Audiences, which creates standardized taxonomy for audiences based on publishers’ first party data. The taxonomy IDs will be used in programmatic ad bidding.
You have to admire the tenacity of adtech folk trying to salvage their ability to target individuals. The Trade Desk and LiveRamp have announced a plan work with Eureopan partners to build a GDPR-complaint identity solution, EUID. The foundations will be LiveRamp’s RampID and The Trade Desk-developed Unified ID 2.0. In theory, it’s all based on consented, first-party data, but newly-aggressive European regulators may take a closer look than they have in the past.
Ad sales platform Magnite has purchased Carbon, which helps publishers optimize their ad revenue through a combination of advertising, content, and audience analytics. You won’t be surprised they position this as a way to make better use of first party data, which I’m beginning to think is ready for its own theme park.
It’s tough to get brand safety right, but the industry keeps trying. IPG Mediabrands announced a new set of tools to find and block inappropriate ad placements, while IAS expanded its suitability measurements to include standards from the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM). Meanwhile, DoubleVerify admitted a mistake made brand safety on X/Twitter look worse than it really was in October 2023 and March 2024.