From Linear to CTV: Harnessing Content Object Signals for Effective Ad Buying

With so much fragmentation within the CTV and OTT space, content object signals have emerged as a game-changer for buyers seeking to navigate the evolving landscape. We’ve previously outlined the importance of content object signals and the challenges involved with sharing such signals. As media owners increasingly embrace and expand the availability of content object signals in CTV and OTT, buyers stand to gain far more than enhanced transparency, unlocking an array of strategic benefits.

Enhanced Targeting and Transparency

As advertisers search the vast and sometimes overwhelming forest of digital content, like Hansel and Gretel, they seek a safe (supply) path home – to reach their target audience and achieve their campaign goals. Following the digital breadcrumbs of valuable information that content object signals can provide, media owners can guide advertisers to the most relevant and engaging content.

Content object signals, like digital breadcrumbs, provide information about the content surrounding ads, such as genre, rating, series, episode, title, network, etc. These signals enable buyers to automate content inclusion/exclusion across their campaign, avoiding association with inappropriate content and protecting the brand’s reputation. This level of transparency gives buyers the fuel to improve brand suitability, targeting, attribution, and optimization to increase the likelihood of engagement and conversion.

In other digital environments, such as the web, buyers have long relied on signals like root domain, seller information, user, and device information to improve their targeting and bidding decisions. Content object signals bring this same level of precision and insight to streaming. With the right data, buyers can make informed decisions, bidding higher on preferred categories and optimizing ROI.

Beyond placement and targeting control, content object signals provide valuable reporting insights. Buyers can analyze patterns in content values and KPIs, such as conversion metrics, to refine future campaigns.

The Power of Contextual Data

In a world where consumers are increasingly ad-savvy, context is king, with 72% of consumers saying their perception of an ad is influenced by the surrounding content (Integral Ad Science, The Context Effect. September 2021). Improved brand awareness, recall, and purchase intent drive investments in contextual targeting, with 78% of advertisers planning to rely on it in 2024 (State of Programmatic, Proximic, 2024).

Content signals are shared in the bid request via the content object in the IAB’s OpenRTB protocol. OpenRTB 2.6 standardizes the sharing of this data in streaming TV. For any given impression opportunity, media owners use the fields of the content object to signal the genre, live stream status, rating, language, network, channel, show, and more. Buyers can then use that data to decide whether that opportunity will help them reach the required audience in the right context, to enhance the user experience with more relevant ads that match the content they’re consuming.

As an example: A media owner shares content object signals relating to an automotive program, including the series and episode title indicating a specific alignment to sports cars. An automotive brand could then use that data to bid on that inventory to advertise its sports car brand. Conversely, the same automotive advertiser can avoid advertising its family car in the same inventory.

Maximizing Reach and Performance

Imagine hitting the advertising jackpot; your message lands perfectly with an audience primed to receive it. That is the key benefit of content object signals – enabling the holy grail of “right ad, right time, right place” that marketers have always chased. Looking at a real-world win, Camelot Strategic Marketing and Media teamed up with DIRECTV, using their content object signals to supercharge content-based targeting in programmatic CTV campaigns. Having access to this data, Camelot made smarter, more efficient buying decisions with less waste and more growth.  

Content object signals are the gift that keeps giving – a transparent, scalable, and efficient method for CTV campaigns that don’t require constant tinkering with deal IDs, blocklists, or new initiatives. As we wave goodbye to cookie-based signals in other media channels, buyers are flocking to streaming platforms.

Effective CTV Buying

As programmatic advertising continues to proliferate in CTV, opening the door to more automated buying processes, content signals offer a powerful optimization tool. With optimized supply paths and more transparent buying and reporting, buyers can ensure they’re getting what they paid for—brand-suitable and relevant CTV ad buys.

The moral of “Hansel and Gretel” is that working together and thinking ahead can help resolve most situations. Similarly, collaboration between publishers and buyers enhances data sharing and efficiency, as seen in Magnite PMPs, which, on average, have 86% more content signals than the open market and competitive PMPs. Activating through programmatic guaranteed (PG) or private marketplace (PMP) deals creates an environment where media owners are happier to share such data.

Discover how Magnite helps CTV buyers and sellers harness the power of content object signals here, or contact your account rep at usdf@magnite.com.