Most publishers add SSPs like insurance. More partners means more demand and more demand means more competition for every impression.
Or so the thinking goes.
But at The New York Times, every ad tech partner has to earn its place in the stack, says Courtney Glaze, VP of revenue operations, on this week’s episode of AdExchanger Talks.
“We’re really looking for partners rather than incremental transactions,” she says. “It’s not demand for demand’s sake.”
In 2019, the newspaper pulled open programmatic advertising from its mobile app over concerns about load times and messing with the reader experience. Four years later, in 2024, it brought programmatic back to its app – but on more controlled terms.
When Glaze joined from Vox Media shortly after programmatic was reinstated, The New York Times had a short list of demand partners with only limited access to its portfolio, which includes Cooking, Games, Wirecutter, The Athletic and more than 40 podcasts.
The partner list has grown since, but only very selectively, including an agreement earlier this year to use Magnite as its preferred SSP for in-app private marketplace deals.
“We are evaluating if tools and demand are duplicative or incremental, if they integrate cleanly with the rest of our stack and whether the value justifies the tax,” she says, “both the cost and the operational burden.”
For example, Glaze says, The New York Times is seeking partners who can help support its programmatic strategy in the context of its entire business, “not just the incremental yield from an individual impression.”
Which is why it’s measuring ROI against more than just advertising yield, Glaze says. Acquiring subscribers, lifetime value, audience development and the reader experience all factor in. And that means being intentional about when to lean into open market demand and when it might be better to go direct or create a PMP.
“That doesn’t mean we leave revenue on the table casually,” she says. “It means we’re just deliberate and thoughtful about where open demand makes sense.”
Also in this episode: How The New York Times uses first-party data to anchor its programmatic strategy, the unglamorous AI use cases that are quietly making rev ops better, the delicate art of introducing ads to The Athletic’s famously loyal fan base and Glaze’s secret competitive streak.
For more articles featuring Courtney Glaze, click here.
