Yahoo Backstage

Goodway Group has reduced the number of SSPs it works with from about 20 at the end of 2024 to just single digits today.

GAM’s dinner with ad agencies sparked speculation that Google is preparing to spin off its bundled SSP and ad server as a remedy to its ad tech monopoly. But Google says it’s just part of the trend of SSPs going direct to buyers.

After adopting OpenPath, Freestar pubs now see 3x higher inventory fill rate from The Trade Desk demand and 27% higher programmatic revenue from these buyers.

Microsoft ad sales vet Rob Wilk joined Yahoo last year to lead revenue for the company’s advertising business with one main goal in mind: to evangelize Yahoo’s owned-and-operated properties. Most advertisers just aren’t aware of the inventory Yahoo has to offer – and that’s on Yahoo.

Just because curated PMPs and direct-to-DSP deals are trendy doesn’t mean they should be the focus of every publisher’s tech stack.

Since launch, 82% of advertisers that buy inventory through the Yahoo DSP have tried Backstage at least once. And buyers are seeing lower CPMs from cutting out SSPs.

There are other motivating factors for crossing the LUMAscape, besides increased efficiency and less ad fraud. These businesses are trying to position themselves to win in a transformative era that will make or break many ad tech companies.

Third-party cookie deprecation creates an opportunity for publishers to increase inventory value, efficiency and partnerships in the open exchange. Here are some efficiency initiatives that should make your inventory more valuable to advertisers.

In today’s newsletter: The Trade Desk opens up OpenPath to CTV inventory; subscriptions remain an important revenue source for news publishers; and a class-action lawsuit alleges PHE violated the California Invasion of Privacy Act.

2023 saw SPO become further cemented in the strategies of DSPs and SSPs for capturing market share. But the long-term trend might see SPO become the default for programmatic advertisers.

Integral Ad Science (IAS) had a healthy Q3, with revenues increasing 19% YOY to $120.3 million. And shares jumped by about 5% after earnings.

Yahoo Backstage, a sorta SSP, is emblematic of a­n SPO trend that hops over either DSPs or SSPs. Plus: a primer on the ecommerce ad metrics and tools changing how marketers buy digitally, from ACOS to TROAS to cost capping.

While Backstage does cut out SSPs for the most part, it also resurrects some aspects of Yahoo’s own SSP tech.

Here’s today’s AdExchanger.com news round-up… Want it by email? Sign up here. A Voyage Of Discovery Newspaper publisher Gannett is suing Google for alleged ad tech monopolization. Google, of course, disputes the charge. Dan Taylor, VP of Google Ads, tells The Wall Street Journal Google will “show the court how our advertising products benefit publishers […]