New Standard Introduces Granular Venue Classification, Aiming to Bridge Gap Between Traditional OOH and Digital Omnichannel Strategies
New York, NY – February 10, 2026 – The Out of Home Advertising Association of America (OAAA) today announced the release of a significantly updated OpenOOH venue taxonomy, a move poised to revolutionize how programmatic buyers engage with out-of-home (OOH) media. This enhanced classification system, first introduced in 2020, now offers a more sophisticated, hierarchical structure designed to provide the granular detail that programmatic buyers demand, thereby fostering greater transparency and efficiency in the rapidly evolving OOH landscape. The announcement also marks the integration of the OpenOOH Taxonomy Working Group into the OAAA Taxonomy Committee, solidifying a dedicated body for the ongoing development and maintenance of this critical industry standard.
For years, the OOH industry has relied on broad venue-type categorizations, such as "retail" or "transit," to define its advertising inventory. While this approach sufficed for traditional, direct-sold transactions, it has presented a significant hurdle for programmatic buyers seeking to seamlessly integrate OOH into their sophisticated, data-driven omnichannel campaigns. The lack of precise differentiation within these generic categories has often led to confusion and hesitancy among programmatic buyers, who require a clear understanding of the specific environments where their advertisements will be displayed.
This opacity has been further exacerbated by publishers and Supply-Side Platforms (SSPs) that, in an effort to simplify inventory management, have sometimes bundled media of disparate quality under the same umbrella. This practice not only undermines transparency but also erodes advertiser confidence in the programmatic OOH ecosystem. The OAAA’s updated OpenOOH taxonomy directly addresses these challenges by introducing a more detailed and standardized method for classifying OOH inventory.
The Evolution of OOH Taxonomy: From Broad Strokes to Granular Detail
The genesis of the OpenOOH initiative can be traced back to 2020, a period when the OOH industry was already recognizing the growing imperative to adapt to the digital age. The initial taxonomy laid the groundwork for a more standardized approach to data sharing and inventory classification. However, as programmatic buying matured and advertisers increasingly sought to leverage OOH as a powerful extension of their digital strategies, particularly in alignment with burgeoning retail media networks and Connected TV (CTV) initiatives, the limitations of the original taxonomy became apparent.
"Programmatic advertisers need an easier way to use OOH inventory as an extension of their omnichannel campaigns, particularly for retail media and CTV buys," stated Premesh Purayil, CTO at OOH publisher OUTFRONT Media. "The previous system, while a step forward, lacked the specific granularity required to truly unlock the potential of programmatic OOH for these integrated strategies. We were often forced to rely on less precise free-text fields, which introduced inconsistencies and inefficiencies."
The revised taxonomy represents a significant leap forward, introducing a "parent/children/grandchildren" schema. This hierarchical structure allows media owners to classify their inventory with unprecedented specificity. For example, a digital screen situated in an airport’s baggage claim area can now be precisely tagged as "transit/airports/baggage claim," a far cry from the previously generic "transit" designation. This level of detail empowers programmatic buyers to make highly informed decisions, ensuring their campaigns align perfectly with their target audiences and brand objectives.
Anna Bager, President and CEO of the OAAA, underscored the strategic importance of this update. "By bringing OOH media classification more in line with programmatic buying, out-of-home publishers can capitalize on the recent explosion of programmatic CTV and retail media spend in recent years," Bager commented. "Our industry has demonstrated remarkable resilience and growth, but to fully harness the digital advertising revolution, we must provide the tools and standards that enable seamless programmatic integration. This enhanced taxonomy is a critical component of that strategy."
OOH’s Resurgence and the Programmatic Imperative
The OOH sector has experienced a remarkable rebound since the profound disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Data from the OAAA reveals a consistent upward trajectory, with the industry reporting 18 consecutive quarters of ad revenue growth. In the third quarter of 2025, for instance, OOH ad spend reached $2.13 billion, marking the highest third-quarter total ever recorded and representing a 4.5% year-over-year improvement. This robust performance underscores the enduring power and reach of OOH advertising.
Despite this impressive recovery and growth, a significant portion of OOH advertising revenue continues to be generated through direct-sold channels. Open-auction programmatic transactions, while growing, still account for a relatively small fraction of overall OOH ad spend. Bager attributes this imbalance, in part, to the historical lack of precise classification for OOH inventory, which has hindered its widespread adoption in programmatic marketplaces.
"The taxonomy for classifying OOH inventory hasn’t offered the precision programmatic advertisers expect," Bager explained. "This has made it challenging for buyers accustomed to the detailed targeting capabilities of digital channels to confidently allocate significant budgets to programmatic OOH. The new taxonomy directly addresses this gap, providing the clarity and specificity needed to build trust and drive adoption."
Deconstructing the New Taxonomy: Structure and Functionality
The "parent/children/grandchildren" schema is the cornerstone of the new OpenOOH taxonomy. This structure enables media owners to create a logical hierarchy for their inventory, moving from broad categories to increasingly specific sub-categories. This allows for a much richer description of the advertising environment.
For example, consider the diverse range of advertising opportunities within a shopping mall:
- Parent Category: Retail
- Child Category: Shopping Mall
- Grandchild Categories: Food Court, Entrance, Storefront, Parking Garage, Cinema Lobby
This level of detail allows advertisers to move beyond simply targeting "retail" and instead specify precisely where within a retail environment they wish their advertisements to appear. A fast-food chain might target screens in the "Food Court," while a luxury brand might opt for placements near high-end "Storefronts."
The OAAA’s initiative also addresses the limitations of legacy fields within the OpenRTB protocol. Previously, the venueTypeString field, a free-text field, was often utilized to manually input more detailed venue information. While this offered some flexibility, its reliance on manual entry and inconsistent application across different platforms made it difficult for programmatic systems to parse accurately.
"Free text fields can be hard for programmatic systems to read accurately because they tend to be inconsistently applied across platforms," noted Purayil. "The new standard eliminates that guesswork. By providing a structured and standardized way to classify venues, we are able to deprecate the venueTypeString field in the new taxonomy, ensuring greater accuracy and efficiency for programmatic transactions."
While the OAAA has taken a leading role in developing this updated taxonomy, its integration into the broader programmatic ecosystem hinges on its adoption within the OpenRTB specification, managed by the IAB Tech Lab. Representatives from AdExchanger reached out to the IAB Tech Lab for comment on their plans for incorporating the new OOH taxonomy and deprecating legacy fields but had not received a response by the time of publication. However, industry stakeholders widely anticipate a collaborative effort to ensure seamless integration.
Democratizing OOH: Expanding Reach and Precision for Advertisers
The implications of the enhanced OpenOOH taxonomy extend far beyond mere technical improvements. It represents a significant step towards democratizing access to OOH inventory and empowering advertisers with greater control and flexibility.
"With more detailed categories, advertisers can zero in on the OOH inventory they want to use for omnichannel audience extension," Purayil elaborated. "CPG brands, for example, could target the types of stores their products are actually sold in, rather than targeting the broad ‘retail’ category. This allows for much more strategic and efficient media planning."
The granular targeting capabilities also extend to the placement of ads within specific venues. A potato chip brand might prioritize street-facing displays mounted in the windows of bodegas to capture impulse purchases, while a pharmaceutical brand might prefer screens located near pharmacy counters inside drug stores, targeting consumers actively seeking health-related products.
Furthermore, the taxonomy helps advertisers avoid inadvertently purchasing "sorta CTV" OOH placements – those screens, such as TVs mounted in bars, that share some characteristics with CTV but differ significantly in their viewing context.
"A brand whose CTV creative depends on sound will likely prefer to skip those environments," Purayil explained. "Conversely, a brand targeting sports fans with ad creative where the audio isn’t so important might deliberately target ‘sorta CTV’ inventory to broaden its reach. By specifying these distinctions, the taxonomy addresses both buy- and sell-side concerns about very different types of OOH inventory getting broadly lumped together."
This nuanced approach benefits both parties. Advertisers gain access to more relevant media environments, ensuring their messages resonate with the intended audience. Publishers, in turn, can more effectively demonstrate the true value of their diverse inventory, mitigating the risk of mismatched placements negatively impacting campaign performance.
Empowering Smaller Publishers and Fueling Open Market Growth
Beyond enhancing targeting capabilities for advertisers, the new taxonomy is poised to level the playing field for smaller, more niche OOH publishers. Historically, larger OOH platforms have benefited from established relationships with specialist agencies and extensive direct sales teams, allowing them to effectively communicate the value and organization of their inventory. Smaller publishers often lack this visibility and established market presence.
"Smaller OOH publishers that adopt the new taxonomy can make their OOH inventory easier to activate programmatically," Purayil stated. "This provides them with a more direct pathway to compete in the programmatic space, attracting advertisers who may not have previously considered them due to a lack of standardized data."
The updated taxonomy also streamlines the process for advertisers looking to execute buys across a mix of large and small publishers. It facilitates the integration of OOH into omnichannel programmatic buying flows, reducing reliance on complex direct deals and private marketplace (PMP) arrangements.
"The revenue is already flowing in heavily through the private marketplace side," Purayil observed. "But this could potentially move some of that revenue into the open marketplace, if it makes sense. By making OOH inventory more accessible and understandable through programmatic channels, we anticipate a significant increase in open-auction OOH spend."
The OAAA’s commitment to fostering a more transparent, efficient, and programmatic-friendly OOH ecosystem through the enhanced OpenOOH taxonomy signals a pivotal moment for the industry. As programmatic buying continues its relentless expansion across all media channels, this initiative ensures that OOH remains a vital and integrated component of modern advertising strategies, poised for continued growth and innovation.
