• by Alex Weprin , March 15, 2018

Fraudulent video advertising traffic declined by 31% in 2017 compared to 2016, according to a new study from the video advertising platform Extreme Reach. Among video aggregators, that number is even more significant, with fraud down 40% year-over-year.

The company attributed the stark decline in ad fraud to “increased pressure for better accountability from advertisers, as well as a corresponding increase in vigilance among ad-tech vendors.”

Many advertisers, including major consumer packaged goods companies like Procter & Gamble, have been applying pressure on digital ad-tech firms and platforms, citing concerns about fraud, viewability and brand safety. The study suggests that the pressure campaign has been working.

In addition to the data about fraud, the study found that viewability rates continue to rise, and are now becoming more consistent, with rates between two-thirds and three-quarters becoming standard. "For advertisers, this insight is helpful when judging their campaign success, with 66 percent qualifying as 'good' and 75 percent being 'superior' rates," the study says.

"For advertisers, the ability to make comparisons against reliable numbers is particularly important when it comes to the fight against ad fraud," says Mary Vestewig, senior director of video account management at Extreme Reach. "The continued decline in fraudulent activity we saw between last year and 2016 suggests that advertising tech vendors are listening."