Sellers Report – July 2024

Ads.txt Lines:

In June 2024, the addition of 87,991 new ads.txt lines and the removal of 89,292 existing lines resulted in a net change of over -1,300 lines. Surprisingly, this is the first time we observed a negative net change over the past six months. However, few top SSP’s like Conversantmedia, Sharethrough, media.net are still able to get a good number of new connections in this hard time. 

The provided snapshot illustrates the distribution of line changes among different tiers of publishers. While looking in-depth, it appears that Tier-2 SSP’s shows a noticeable net change in ads.txt lines, with a decrease of approximately 1,300 lines.

Market Shakers:

Although there has been minimal change in Ads.txt lines compared to recent months, some SSPs continue to gain significant advantages and are moving in the right direction.

• It’s interesting to note that SSP like Seedtag has seen a good increase in new ads.txt lines over the past month. This shows that Publisher’s are showing more interest to connect with such SSP’s who can support them in contextual advertising with their Artificial Intelligence platforms in cookie-less world.
• As mentioned previously, we are seeing a continuous improvement in the number of new connections for Sharethrough(listing in top list for past couple of months). 

Tier – 1,2,3 Publishers:

We have noticed a decent number of net change increases in the past few weeks, below are the top SSPs who contributed to that spike.

• In June, Conversant demonstrated significant growth within the top SSP landscape, recording the highest number of new connections (approximately 1,000) 

Big Winners:

Analyzing the changes in direct connections among the connected publishers in the past month, the following SSPs appear as top direct domain gainers across each tier that we segregated SSPs based on their rank/coverage.

• Trustx started experiencing a good number of direct connections after they confirmed on getting separated from the DCN group. This company will be a subsidiary of Symitri, which brought them new direct connections by maintaining their B Corp status with the new tie up.
• CTV and video supported SSP’s like Unruly are experiencing a significant rise in their direct connections. 

Leaderboard Dynamics:

We’ve assigned ranks to each SSP based on their direct coverage among the top 10,000 publishers. Below, we highlight the significant jumps in ranks for top SSPs observed in the past couple of weeks.

• Arkadium surged 332 spots on the Tier 3 leaderboard in June 2024, fueled by a massive 158 increase in direct connections. 

Auction Duplication: A Critical Issue in the AdTech Industry

• Tier 1 SSPs are expected to have a lower share of Direct Only Domains and a higher share of Direct + Reseller Domains in comparison to other tiers. This is attributed because Tier-2 and Tier-3 SSPs rely on Tier-1 to serve as a demand partner.
• However, during this process, Tier 1 SSPs may inadvertently be listed as a reseller on domains where they are already directly connected, leading to auction duplication and classification as Direct + Reseller Domains.
• For SSPs, especially Tier 1, managing intermediaries in choosing non-duplicate domains is challenging. Additionally, it becomes an added responsibility for SSPs to address both auction duplication and carbon emissions. Choosing the right intermediary is crucial for reaching unique domains where their ads.txt lines are not yet present.

At DataBeat, we offer assistance in identifying and managing ineffective intermediaries, reducing duplicate domains, and improving your green index score while not compromising on your net revenue. Leveraging our Competitive Intelligence (CI) Tool, we enable you to identify & address these challenges effectively.

Breakdown of domain connections to SSPs by relationship types (Direct Only, Reseller Only, Direct + Reseller)

• Direct Only: Domains exclusively connected through direct relationships.
• Reseller Only: Domains exclusively connected through reseller relationships.
• Direct + Reseller: Domains with both direct and reseller connection.

Proportion of unique and duplicate domains, and average number of intermediaries influence on duplicates.

• Unique Domains: Domains exclusively connected to an SSP through a single connection.
• Duplicated Domains:  Domains connected to an SSP through multiple intermediaries or integrations, resulting in duplications.