Ad Fraudsters are after the GDPR Consent String
GDPR forced the entire ecosystem to change.
- Publishers needed a CMP to pass their daisybit (Consent string) so that the buy-side can understand the consent status of the user.
- Advertisers are required to interpret the string appropriately. The marketplaces have evolved their bidding system to make sure the string can be passed.
Leaving aside the adaptability rate and CPMs for now, we’ll focus on a crucial issue that’s been on the rise recently.
When GDPR came in, everyone had their predictions. However, ad fraudsters ruining the consent string isn’t on the list.
In fact, we were busy adapting the law. It seems fraudsters were also busy finding the way to break in. Last week, Digiday reported that some ad tech vendors have been noticing fake GDPR consent strings.
ICYDK: GDPR Consent String (Or DaisyBit) is a compressed binary information which can be passed throughout the online advertising ecosystem to transfer the consent status of the user visiting a website.
Why the GDPR String?
As you know, daisybit will be passed throughout the chain to know the consent status of the user. If a user isn’t giving any consent to the vendors, then non-personalized ads will be served. This results in lower CPMs.
The fraudsters seem to manipulate the string to modify the consent status of the user. Apparently, this defies the existence of GDPR law.
Takeaway:
We’re not sure about the extent of the problem yet. But, it shouldn’t stop you from taking the preventive measures. We advise you to start with the CMP and its configuration.
Premium Publishers’ Ad Strategy – Part II
In our last weekly roundup, we saw a few ad strategies of premium publishers. Let’s continue exploring.
1. Quartz – Site Redesign
Quartz, a premium publisher redesigned its site complete for speed. As per the source, Quartz parent Uzabase is trying to move towards the PMPs and paywalls. So, the new design isn’t just optimized for speed. The media is aiming to increase the newsletter subscribers and keep the readers on site longer.
“We wanted to adopt a new, more modern tech stack to put us in a better position for the next six years”
– Zach Seward, Quartz’s chief product officer.
2. Quartz (Again) – Own Bot Studio
When Facebook started rolling out chatbots for publishers and brands, everyone built chatbots. From the Guardian to the Business Insider, you can see messengers running on automation, everywhere. But today, the situation is different.
Several premium publishers including the Mic, The Washington Post, and The Guardian have closed down their bots on messenger. They realized it is better to direct the users to their own platforms rather than relying on Facebook.
But, there’s an exception – Quartz.
Quartz still sticks to bots, but for a different business. The publisher runs ‘Bot Studio’ to build bots for advertisers and other publishers. If you’re focused on generating some subscribers or running polls, bots are the right way to go. However, we believe they’re momentary.
The race against the duopoly
Google revamping its ad business brand as ‘Google Ad Manager’ is a well-known story. Now, according to Digiday, Amazon is following the suit. Amazon, which raked in $2.2 billion last quarter is known for its isolated ad business. There’s AAP, AMG, and AMS (guide).
As advertisers are planning to spend more on Amazon, it doesn’t want to confuse them with their offering. The giant is unifying its ad business into a single platform.
What is it?
It’s a consolidated platform which circles all the advertising products from Amazon Advertising Platform, Amazon Media Group, and Amazon Marketing Software.
What can advertisers do?
With the new platform, advertisers would be able to buy campaigns and pull reports from the same place, whether they choose to run the ads on Amazon or on third-party sellers. Everything is now sealed under one place.
Takeaway:
It may sound like a simple step. But, we believe that’s what everyone is going to do in the near future. As the digital ad spend is getting intensified with more players, it is essential to stand out from the crowd – Consolidating the platforms will work for the giants. As a publisher, you need to streamline the way advertisers can buy impressions from your site(s).
GDPR Advances the Closed Marketplace
We already know how GDPR pushed the guaranteed deals up for some publishers. It’s time for PMPs. eMarketer reported that the private marketplaces are seeing a jump after GDPR. The survey conducted in May shows,
1. 55% are interested in moving to a private marketplace or guaranteed deals, rather than trading on an open exchange.
Why: Advertisers believe PMPs are the best way to ensure the expected ROI can is met. Besides, on the open exchanges, fraudsters are imitating the inventories of premium publishers.
2. Publishers are wary of open exchanges.
Why: Obviously, PMPs offer premium placements for advertisers. When there aren’t enough buyers, publishers will cascade down the impressions to open exchanges. But, they are strictly making the impressions premium by offering them on PMPs.
Takeaway:
Both the publishers and advertisers are endorsing the closed deal because of the issues in open exchanges. However, the strategies wouldn’t work for mid-market publishers. The best way is to optimize your supply chain and ensuring only trustworthy SSPs are on your page.
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