The
Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) released a primer on improving ad viewability aimed at publishers on Tuesday.
The primer, focusing on site design, ad tech and operational strategy and
policies, outlines a range of tactics for publishers including working with a third-party vendor or using an internal measurement system as a "source of truth" that can be used as
a baseline and in testing and iterating. It's available for download here.
A mere 46% of digital ads were
viewable in 2015, about the same as the year before, according to research from Viant. The research also found that major media brands including CBS and CNN had a 71% viewability rate for 2015, an
improvement from 2014's 67% average. (Read more.)
Companies that helped develop the primer include Disney, Google, NBCUniversal, PGATour, Turner Broadcasting Digital and Yahoo, with Yahoo's James Deaker and Nidhi
Rao leading the charge.
"When publishers create the necessary changes, the marketplace does respond and the rewards do follow," reads a summary concluding the primer. "It is absolutely
essential that publishers deal with partners in a transparent way."
Earlier this month, the IAB Tech Lab released a primer for publishers on ad blocking, covering its new
DEAL program, Real-Time Daily reported.