• by Ben Frederick  @mp_benfred, May 3, 2016

Ad network Tapjoy announced a partnership with advertising technology company Rubicon Project to launch the Tapjoy Private Exchange, which opens up Tapjoy’s premium in-app mobile video inventory to programmatic buyers on Rubicon Project’s platform.

Tapjoy has inventory across more than 10,000 mobile apps that reaches 520 million monthly active users.

The opt-in video ads the network serves rewards users for viewing ads and also allows them to skip content if they feel like it. 

The Tapjoy Private Exchange also provides buyers with access to Tapjoy’s first-party targeting, based on billions of mobile data points and rich app usage analysis including user preferences, conversion history, lookalike comparisons, and behavioral insights to drive industry-leading advertising ROI.

“By automating rewarded video with partners like Tapjoy, we are advancing our mission to empower the consumer by bringing them into the advertising equation as an active participant -- choosing how to trade their time and attention in return for a more personalized and engaging experience,” stated Joe Prusz, head of mobile, Rubicon Project.

Private marketplaces (PMP) have become a much more popular alternative to open exchanges with their level of control, allowing buyers and sellers to select exactly who they want to do business with and guarantee premium inventory.

PMPs work well for brands with good name recognition and ad networks that can offer a large breadth of smaller publishers to advertisers.