When The Times published their investigative findings on brands appearing next to extremist, racist, religious, and/or politically inflammatory content on Youtube, it sent shockwaves through the digital ad landscape.

For a long time, programmatic advertising has been the wizard behind the curtain, ensuring ads were placed in the Land of Oz (the internet).

Transparency was low, and metrics murky, but for many advertisers, eyeballs were eyeballs – as long as they were reached, the job was done.

The ad crisis changed things dramatically.

The current programmatic market

Advertisers have now banded together under slogans of transparency and safety, demanding the curtain be pulled back. Some advertisers, such as P&G, have dramatically reduced their programmatic ad spend.

The programmatic market is in a state of flux. When looking at Q3 vs Q1, 57% of buy side technologies have seen fewer brands place with them. Trust has become a crucial part of the programmatic buying process.

With this in mind, MediaRadar decided to take a look at which buy side technologies have capitalized on concerns around brand safety to win more clients:

* Only BST’s with over 50 brands and 50 sites associated were included

With one of its biggest competitors, Alphabet, caught in the crosshairs, Amazon has made massive strides within the ad tech industry – 29% more brands utilized their service in Q3 compared to Q1.

Adara, which focuses on “a unique holistic understanding of patterns, trends and behavior” as a “safe and secure way to share and analyze historical and real-time data”[1], has come out on top.

It is clear through their messaging, and the affiliated results, that safety is crucial to successful buy side growth.

Trust and transparency are the catalysts that will propel the programmatic industry in both the present and future.

For more insights on current industry trends, programmatic advertising, and brand safety, be sure to subscribe to our blog and newsroom!

[1] https://adara.com/