The long-held adage that "all media isn’t created equal" is being vigorously re-examined within the advertising industry, particularly as programmatic ad technology grapples with the inherent nuances of media quality. A forthcoming paper from the Coalition for Innovative Media Measurement (CIMM) directly challenges the prevailing theory that ad formats and creative can be entirely standardized and commoditized, with the primary focus solely on audience targeting. This groundbreaking research, teased during CIMM’s recent East event in New York City, argues that a pervasive fixation on short-term outcomes has obscured the true value of media and perpetuated systemic inefficiencies within the digital advertising ecosystem, especially concerning Connected TV (CTV) inventory.
The paper, reviewed in a pre-release copy by AdExchanger, goes beyond simply demonstrating that differences in media quality are measurable. It asserts that the industry’s relentless pursuit of immediate results has fostered an environment where made-for-advertising (MFA) sites can manipulate the programmatic landscape, brands inadvertently overspend on low-quality CTV placements mixed with premium inventory, and ad tech vendors prioritize audience metrics over the intrinsic value of the media itself.
Erez Levin, founder of ad tech consultancy Emet Advisory and a co-author of the paper, highlighted the industry’s struggle with defining media quality. "Quality has been a buzzword for a while in this industry, and no one’s really defined it, except, for the most part, in self-serving ways," Levin stated. CIMM’s objective, he explained, is to establish an "objective, industry-wide shared consensus and framework" to move discussions around media quality measurement out of their current state of ambiguity. The paper is not intended to introduce new measurement standards but rather to catalyze an industry-wide conversation that compels agencies, tech platforms, and publishers to articulate their approaches to media quality.
The Imperative for Consensus in a Fragmented Ecosystem
The need for such a unified approach is underscored by the explosive growth of media quality, curation, and programmatic verification services. A burgeoning landscape of startups, including Jounce Media, DeepSee, Sincera, Adalytics, and Gamera, are each tackling these complex challenges from distinct angles. Furthermore, the re-emergence of established players like DoubleVerify and Integral Ad Science, alongside innovative approaches to attention measurement and deal curation, has injected new dynamism into the discourse.
The genesis of the CIMM paper can be traced back to its collaboration with the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) on the Attention Measurement Playbook for Marketers, released late last year. During the development of these attention standards, the working group repeatedly encountered a fundamental lack of consensus on how to effectively measure the quality of ad impressions. While progress is being made, CIMM aims to elevate awareness of the increasingly sophisticated tools available to advertisers.
Levin has been a vocal advocate for improved quality and attention measurement since at least 2017, when he served as a product specialist for Google Marketing Platform, engaging with both buy and sell sides. Co-author Gabriel Dorosz, global advertising initiative lead at the International News Media Association and former head of audience strategy for The New York Times, brought a crucial publisher-side perspective to the project. "In the premium news publisher space, there’s a belief that the market is not serving those kinds of publishers well," Dorosz remarked. "My passion is that quality publishers ought to be getting more of their fair share of ad spend, and this paper is a way to advance that."
Dispelling Pernicious Myths in Programmatic Buying
Dorosz further emphasized that the paper is not solely focused on empowering publishers to showcase their media’s quality. It also aims to equip buyers with the insights needed to avoid squandering budgets on ineffective ad placements. The authors endeavor to debunk deeply ingrained myths that have taken root due to buyers being "oversold on the value of certainty," as Dorosz put it.
A prime example is the industry’s heavy reliance on deterministic attribution as a proxy for audience value. The presence of a deterministic identifier in a bid request is often perceived as inherently more valuable than an impression lacking such data, eclipsing factors like time of day, contextual relevance, and device type. However, the CIMM paper contends that probabilistic modeling, rather than deterministic data alone, offers marketers a more accurate assessment of the true value across a broader spectrum of ad impressions.
CIMM provides actionable guidance for incorporating probabilistic metrics, such as attention scoring and contextual relevance, to gauge an impression’s potential to advance a brand’s stated campaign objectives. It meticulously details how these metrics can fluctuate significantly based on time of day and other contextual variables. This contrasts with the current practice, particularly in CTV, where premium inventory often commands high price points regardless of audience receptivity, such as during overnight hours. Levin cautions that advertisers should question why a streaming campaign might allocate a substantial portion of its budget to overnight placements and be wary if such allocations occur without clear justification.
A New Paradigm for Media Quality: The Quality Trifecta
To galvanize the industry’s renewed emphasis on media quality, the paper introduces a novel model designed to reconnect with the fundamental principles of marketing. This new framework is largely predicated on "The Quality Trifecta," a concept Levin has championed since last year. The core tenet is the independent measurement of media quality, creative quality, and audience quality.
Within this framework, media quality is further dissected into two critical components: "attention," defined as the prominence and visibility of the ad placement, and "situational context," which assesses the likelihood that the surrounding media environment fosters a receptive mood in the viewer. The paper advocates for a departure from binary quality assessment methods, such as the mere presence of an ID in a bid request or meeting minimum viewability thresholds. Instead, it champions the adoption of "non-binary, relative, and probabilistic" measurements, like attention scoring, which evaluate media quality on a spectrum of effectiveness.
These more nuanced, spectrum-based approaches are deemed superior for cross-media comparisons and for capturing the intricate variations across different audiences and contextual factors, including time of day. Furthermore, the paper elaborates on the importance of balancing short-term performance with long-term brand-building opportunities, though it acknowledges that brands heavily reliant on immediate returns should continue to prioritize them.
CTV as the Proving Ground and the Buy-Side Imperative
While CIMM’s paper is intended as a comprehensive guide for the entire open web, the authors identify streaming media and CTV supply as the crucial proving ground. This segment represents the highest-stakes market, characterized by elevated CPMs, intense demand competition, and expansive creative canvases. Dorosz further points out that CTV’s relative newness and lack of deep-seated dependency on 20-plus years of third-party cookie infrastructure mean its players are less constrained by established norms. Moreover, many traditional pixel-based measurement methodologies, effective on other platforms, are not well-suited for the complexities of CTV.
The paper proposes a fundamental rethinking of viewability measurement for CTV. Given that CTV ads typically auto-play with sound and occupy the full screen, the conventional viewability question is rendered largely moot. Instead, the focus shifts to ensuring the ad is actually seen and processed by a receptive audience.
Ultimately, while industry-wide adoption remains the overarching goal, the authors concur that the buy side must spearhead this transformation. "These theories only matter," Dorosz concluded, "if the buy side demonstrates success and drives repeatability." The implications of this shift are profound, potentially leading to a more equitable distribution of advertising spend, a reduction in wasted ad dollars, and a more effective and accountable digital advertising ecosystem that values the inherent quality of media placements alongside audience reach. The insights provided by CIMM’s research offer a roadmap for advertisers and publishers alike to navigate the complexities of modern media buying and to foster a more sustainable and value-driven digital future.
