• by Gavin O'Malley , Staff Writer @mp_gavin, May 19, 2014

Is a native ad really "native" if it runs on more than one Website? Absolutely, according to Lon Otremba, CEO of Bidtellect -- one of several start-ups trying to meld programmatic with native. “The best, truly native [ads] should be portable,” Otremba told attendees of OMMA Native on Monday. If something “works,” i.e., connects with consumers, it can work in more than one environment, he reasoned on a programmatic panel. While most marketers remain wary of native’s scalability, Otremba’s fellow panelists seemed to back him up on Monday. “I hope [native] can be transported,” said Judy Shapiro, founder and CEO of direct marketing startup engageSimply. “I’m betting on it!” Yet, “RTB lends itself very well to ad formats that have a standard size, placement etc.,” Chris Sukornyk, founder of media-buying platform Chango, told RTMDaily, earlier this year. “However, native ads are inherently non-standard … While standards are being looked at, there are a lot more variables with native ads, and it often requires publisher approval/input.”