Advertising

OTT advertising

OTT advertising is the delivery of advertisements over the Internet to consumers. Specifically, ‘over-the-top’ (OTT) refers to the delivery of media content over the internet to any device, which applies to any advertising placed within or alongside this content.

Server-side ad insertion (SSAI)

SSAI is the technology which enables the seamless placement of personalised advertising into streamed content on internet-connected devices. The technology combines manifest manipulation, ad server communication, and ad bitrate and resolution normalisation – which all happens on the server side before it is presented to clients in the manifest. This means that ads are stitched directly into the content and can’t be stopped by ad blockers. SSAI is also referred to as dynamic ad insertion (DAI) or ad stitching.

Client-side ad insertion (CSAI)

CSAI is a technology which places advertising into streamed content on internet-connected devices. Differing from SSAI, from the viewer's point of view the ads are separated from the content they’re watching. A player will stop the content and switch to playing an ad, which is requested from the end-user device. As a result of this process being done on the client side, ads can be stopped with ad blockers.  

Programmatic advertising

Digital advertising used to be sold manually by people, with prices and placements negotiated individually. Now, programmatic advertising uses technology to automate the process, with parameters defined by advertisers to purchase digital ad inventory.  

Simply put, it’s the automation of the purchase, sale, delivery, and measurement of digital advertising through advertising technology platforms.

Ad server  

An ad server is the advertising technology which is used to create and run digital advertising campaigns. These servers decide which ads to display and serve on websites, while also displaying reports for advertisers and publishers about metrics such as impressions or conversions.  

Supply-side platform (SSP)

Supply-side platforms are advertising technology platforms used by publishers to manage, sell, and optimise their ad space. These platforms make it possible for publishers to monetise their OTT services and apps by showing ads in video, display, and native formats to their viewers.  

Demand-side platform (DSP)

Demand-side platforms are advertising technology platforms which allow advertisers and ad agencies to purchase ad space from multiple publishers through SSPs, in one place. They help brands and agencies choose which impressions to buy and at what price. Advertisers can select audiences based on demographics,  browsing behaviour, shopping patterns, and much more.  

Advertising impression

An impression is the metric used to measure digital advertising views. This metric quantifies the number of digital views and engagements an ad, digital post, or web page gathers. Sometimes “ad view” is used in place of impression, but they share the same definition. Digital advertising is usually sold on a per-impression basis, so it’s an essential part of the industry. It’s important to note that impressions are not a measure of how many times an ad has been clicked on, but simply how many times it has been displayed or viewed.

Invalid traffic (IVT)

Invalid traffic or IVT is the term used for advertising impressions generated by bots or nonhuman traffic. Detecting IVT is important for protecting ad spend and ensuring that ads are actually being viewed by people. This type of traffic isn’t always malicious, so it shouldn’t be confused with ad fraud.

Ad monetisation

Ad monetisation is simply the process of monetising your app or website with advertising revenue. In the context of the OTT industry, this comes in different forms, which include advertising-based video on demand (AVOD) and free advertising-supported TV (FAST).

Advertising-based video on demand (AVOD)

AVOD is the term used for streaming services that place ads into their content to monetise the service they offer. Viewers will typically have to watch ads before and during the content they watch and in return, they won’t have to pay to access this content.  

Free advertising-supported TV (FAST)  

FAST - often referred to as a FAST channel – is similar to traditional broadcast TV, except that the experience is delivered over the internet. A FAST channel is a linear ‘live’ channel where content is presented in a schedule, with ads placed at specific cue points or breakpoints. Viewers can typically pick from several channels on services such as Pluto TV or Roku, like a traditional EPG on broadcast TV.