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The Big Story: Programmatic Purification

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It’s almost become a cliché to say programmatic is so complex no one can follow an impression from start to finish.

Several years ago, when PwC, with ad trade body ISBA, attempted to audit programmatic ad budgets in the UK, it was a difficult and protracted process – and by the end of it the researchers were unable to attribute 17% of media investments.

In other words, nearly one-fifth of programmatic ad spend fell into what ISBA and PwC referred to as the “unknown delta.” It was untraceable.

The 2022 version of the ISBA-PwC study took half the time to complete – just nine months – and the unknown delta dropped from 17% to 3%, or just 1% within private marketplaces.

Senior Editor James Hercher spoke with ISBA and PwC about their latest findings.

But first, we talk through YouTube’s latest ammunition against TikTok. Starting on February 1, YouTube is retiring its creator fund for Shorts and .

YouTube will now offer most creators a better opportunity to earn money than TikTok, which only shares revenue with the top 4% of creators. Associate Editor Anthony Vargas digs in on why YouTube is opening its wallet to take on TikTok.

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