Q3 2018 ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORTADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018 COVERAGE RATE AMONG TOP 10K PROGRAMMATIC...
Transcript of Q3 2018 ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORTADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018 COVERAGE RATE AMONG TOP 10K PROGRAMMATIC...
Q3 2018ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018 2
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The IAB-led ads.txt initiative, launched in 2017, aims to bring transparency into the programmatic
advertising ecosystem of sellers and domains.
Publishers have rapidly adopted ads.txt since its inception. Pixalate began tracking implementation in
September 2017; since then, adoption has increased at an astronomical rate (over 14,037%).
Marketers have begun buying inventory from sites that have ads.txt implemented to ensure a transparent
transaction. Google recently announced the ability for marketers to only buy ads.txt-authorized display
and video inventory.
Pixalate fully supports the ads.txt initiative, and our Q3 2018 report updates the marketplace on the latest
trends.
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018 3
KEY 2018 TAKEAWAYS
7.1xgrowth in adoption in 2018
99%how often Google is on ads.txt files in 2018
22%lower ad fraud rates on sites with ads.txt;
improvement from 10% in Q2 2018
77%of top programmatic sites have ads.txt to
end 2018, up from 47% in 2017
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
Continued improvements in overall ad fraud protection
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LOOKING AHEAD TO 2019
Mobile in-app and Connected TV/OTT adoption of ads.txt
More scale; 23% of top 5000 programmatic sites have yet to adopt ads.txt
A variety of SSPs expand reach on top programmatic sites; not too concentrated
SITES WITH ADS.TXT HAVE 22% LOWER AD FRAUD RATES
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN ADS.TXT AND AD FRAUDQ2 2018
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22% LESS AD FRAUD
● Sites with ads.txt had a
13.5% IVT rate in Q3
2018 versus 17.4% for
sites without ads.txt
○ This is a 22%
difference
● Improvements are
increasing; there was a
10% different in ad
fraud in Q2 vs. a 22%
difference in Q3.
ADS.TXT ROSE 7.1xYEAR-OVER-YEAR
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
TOTAL NUMBER OF SITES WITH ADS.TXTQ4 2017 - Q3 2018
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UP 7.1x YEAR-OVER-YEAR
● Ads.txt adoption has
increased over 7.1x
year-over-year
○ From under
100,000 sites to
nearly 600,000
● Adoption increased 19%
in Q3 compared to Q2
7.1x growthYoY
OVER 75% OF TOP PROGRAMMATIC SITES
NOW HAVE ADS.TXT
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
% OF TOP 1000 PROGRAMMATIC SITES WITH ADS.TXTQ4 2017 - Q3 2018
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RISING ABOVE 75%
● Over 75% of the top
1000 sites (in terms of
programmatic ad volume)
now have ads.txt
○ Q3 marked the
first time this
milestone was
eclipsed
● Adoption increased over
33% year-over-year
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
% OF TOP 5000 PROGRAMMATIC SITES WITH ADS.TXTQ4 2017 - Q3 2018
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64% YoY GROWTH
● 77% of the top 5000
sites now have ads.txt
○ This is the first
time the 75%
barrier has been
broken
● Ads.txt adoption
increased 64%
year-over-year among
the top 5000
programmatic sites
ALEXA 1000 GROWTHPLATEAUED AT 40%
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
% OF ALEXA TOP 1000 SITES WITH ADS.TXTQ4 2017 - Q3 2018
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PLATEAUED ADOPTION
● 40% of sites in the Alexa
1,000 had ads.txt
implemented by the end
of Q3 2018
● Adoption has plateaued;
the same number of
Alexa 1000 sites have
ads.txt in Q3 2018
compared to Q2 2018
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
% OF ALEXA TOP 5000 SITES WITH ADS.TXTQ4 2017 - Q3 2018
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SLOW AND STEADY
● Ads.txt adoption
continued slow and
steady growth among the
Alexa 5000, rising to
37.4% in Q3 2018
● Adoption has increased
87% year-over-year
GOOGLE IS TOP ADS.TXTPARTNER, BUT OTHERS
CONTINUE TO GAIN
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
EXCHANGES LISTED ON MOST ADS.TXT FILESAS OF SEPTEMBER 30, 2018; AMONG TOP 10K PROGRAMMATIC SITES
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GOOGLE GROWS, BUT LEAD SLIPS
● Of the top 10,000 programmatic
sites, Google is listed on 7,443
ads.txt files, representing an
increase of 635 compared to Q2
● AppNexus (+766), OpenX (+841),
Rubicon Project (+933), PubMatic
(+1,151), Index Exchange (+845),
One by AOL: Display (+982), SpotX
(+871), and Sovrn (+881) all gained
ground on Google in Q3
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
COVERAGE RATE AMONG TOP 10K PROGRAMMATIC SITESAS OF SEPTEMBER 30, 2018
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6 EXCHANGES ON 66%+ ON TOP DOMAINS
● Six companies are on at least
two-thirds (66%) of ads.txt files
among the top 10,000
programmatic domains; only 1
company had this much
coverage rate in Q2
● Nine companies now have
60%+ coverage rate, up from
four in Q2 and just one in Q1
OPENX OVERTAKESGOOGLE AS NO. 2
‘RESELLER’ PARTNER
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
EXCHANGES LISTED AS ‘DIRECT’ PARTNER ON TOP SITESAS OF SEPTEMBER 30, 2018
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GOOGLE TOPS THE LIST
● Google is a ‘Direct’
partner with 7,019 sites
among the top 10,000
programmatic sites – an
increase of 642 QoQ
● PubMatic became the
No. 10 company in terms
of ‘Direct’ listings among
top publishers
○ The rest of the
top 10 was the
same as Q2
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
EXCHANGES LISTED AS ‘RESELLER’ ON TOP SITESAS OF SEPTEMBER 30, 2018
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OPENX TAKES NO. 2 SPOT
● AppNexus was again the
top ‘Reseller’ partner,
with 6,896 listings (+832
QoQ)
● OpenX (+956) overtook
Google (+644) as the No.
2 ‘Reseller’ partner
among the top 10,000
programmatic sites
GOOGLE IS ON 98.7%OF ALL ADS.TXT FILES
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
EXCHANGES LISTED ON MOST ADS.TXT FILESAS OF SEPTEMBER 30, 2018; AMONG ALL DOMAINS WITH ADS.TXT
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GOOGLE AT 98.7%
● Of the nearly 600,000+
domains with ads.txt,
Google is listed on 98.7%
of them
● AppNexus (64.2%),
PubMatic (62.6%) round
out the top three
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
WHAT IS ADS.TXT?
The IAB Tech Lab’s ads.txt initiative aims to increase
transparency in the inventory supply chain by helping buyers
identify “Authorized Digital Sellers” for participating
publishers. Specifically, ads.txt combats “counterfeit
inventory,” defined by the IAB as “a unit of inventory sourced
from a domain, app or video that is intentionally mislabeled
and offered for sale a different domain, app or video.”
WHAT IS A ‘DIRECT’ SELLER AND A ‘RESELLER’?
“Direct” means that the SSP or exchange has a direct
business relationship with the publisher to sell the publisher’s
inventory. “Reseller” means the publisher has authorized
another company to resell inventory on the publisher’s behalf.
IS THIS DATA INCLUDED IN THE SELLER TRUST INDEXES?
Yes. Our ads.txt data is incorporated into the Pixalate Seller
Trust Indexes. Each seller is given an “Ads.txt Score.”
DOES ADS.TXT WORK FOR MOBILE APPS?
As of the end of Q3 2018, ads.txt only supports domains (e.g.
desktop and mobile web). A version of ads.txt for apps is in a
state of public comment as of November 30, 2018. The latest
draft can be found here.
ARE ALL SITES WITH ADS.TXT TRUSTWORTHY?
Not necessarily. Any publisher can add an ads.txt file to their
site. Just because they have an ads.txt file does not mean
they are a trustworthy publisher. Ads.txt does, however, give
buyers confidence that they are buying legitimate publisher
inventory (rather than “counterfeit inventory”).
DOES ADS.TXT REMOVE ALL AD FRAUD?
No. Proper use of ads.txt combats domain spoofing, which is
just one type of invalid traffic; Pixalate tracks 38 unique types.
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FAQs
ADS.TXT TRENDS REPORT Q3 2018
The research and insights contained within this report represent Pixalate’s
opinion as it pertains to the information Pixalate believes will be most relevant to
the digital advertising industry’s battle against ad fraud.
The data has not been audited or reviewed by a third party, but the research
and insights are grounded in Pixalate’s proprietary technology and analytics,
which Pixalate is continuously evaluating and updating.
Pixalate’s data science and analyst team analyzed over 7.5
million domains utilizing proprietary analytics tools to compile
this research. The research contained herein represents data
collected by Pixalate from October 1, 2017 through September
30, 2018. Pixalate measured millions of domains each month to
identify sites that have ads.txt files implemented. The data in this
report is reflective of root domains only; Pixalate has removed
duplicates occurring from subdomain ads.txt files.
“Alexa Top 1000” and “Alexa Top 5000” sites were identified
using Alexa.com’s rankings. The top 1000/5000/10000 sites in
terms of programmatic ad volume (i.e. “Pixalate Top 5000”) were
identified using Pixalate’s proprietary ranking of volume among
domains which support programmatic advertising. The ranking
data is reflective of the marketplace as of the last date of each
quarter.
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METHODOLOGY & DISCLAIMER
METHODOLOGY DISCLAIMER
ABOUT PIXALATEPixalate is the only cross-platform fraud intelligence company that works
with brands and platforms to prevent invalid traffic and improve ad inventory
quality. We offer the only system of coordinated solutions across desktop,
mobile web, mobile in-app, and OTT for better detection, diagnosis, and
elimination of ad fraud. Pixalate is an MRC-accredited solution for the
detection and prevention of sophisticated invalid traffic (SIVT) across
desktop and mobile web, mobile in-app, and OTT advertising.
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