Dive Brief:
- Rubicon Project and Integral Ad Science have partnered on viewability scores for video and display ad placement, per a joint press release.
- The new viewability solution is available to IAS customers and has been accredited by the Media Ratings Council (MRC).
- Applying viewability scores at the individual ad placement level and delivering them within the auction bid request promises to make it easier for marketers to measure the ROI of their display and video ads. "With this important innovation, Rubicon Project and IAS have significantly advanced the viewability discipline," said Jeremy Mason, VP of Business Development, Audience Science, in a statement.
Dive Insight:
MRC accreditation of the new scoring system comes on the tail of Marc Pritchard's recent call to action at the Interactive Advertising Bureau’s Annual Leadership Meeting. Pritchard, the chief brand officer at Proctor & Gamble, suggested MRC approval is going to be the bare minimum requirement for ad spending from the consumer products giant going forward.
The bold criteria were praised by some but left others questioning what exactly had to be MRC approved — platforms or every individual piece of media.
Pritchard urged for an overall cleaning-up of the media supply chain, with transparency helping clear the way for a more efficient ecosystem. Transparency and more valuable data are clearly at the core of Rubicon Project and Integral Ad Science's new initiative, though whether its announcement is in direct response to Pritchard's comments is unclear. It will be interesting to see if more products tout MRC approval this year.
Proctor & Gamble is the world's largest advertiser and changes to its ad buying policies have the potential to shake up the industry, especially if other big brands begin demanding more thorough verification.
The new scoring system for desktop and mobile webpages provides buyers with data to make better real-time decisions across open and private marketplaces, according to Tom Kershaw, chief product and engineering Officer at Rubicon Project. He added that placement-level viewability data is also valuable to publishers in order to evaluate and optimize ad inventory for "driving superior performance and pricing and ultimately maximizing long-term yield."