More ad-tech firms are looking to offer, or are already offering, server-to-server header bidding. But client-side header-bidding tactics aren't going away any time soon, even though they're fraught with pitfalls that add to the degradation of the digital ad inventory supply chain.

While server-side header bidding is one approach to current conditions in which publishers find their Web pages bloated with tags, bits of code, and widgets, it comes with its own challenges. AppNexus is eyeing a hybrid approach as it develops its own server-side technology.

With the issue of brand safety front and center amid advertiser concerns over the possibility their ads will appear next to offensive content on Google's YouTube, RTBlog asked industry executives to weigh in on the matter, and the degree to which programmatic media buying practices have exacerbated the issue.

Facebook's addition of a new feature to its popular Messenger app will allow users to share their locations continuously, for up to an hour. Apart from texting, that's seriously real-time communication. What are the chances that Facebook will open this feature up to advertising?

Sling TV 's diving into programmatic advertising with Adobe. Sling will team up with Adobe's Advertising Cloud to enable marketers to bid in real time on live streaming and video-on-demand.

As more advertisers curtail non-search advertising on its platform, Google finds itself in the line of fire and looking for technology solutions that also require human judgment. Google acknowledged it will hire more people and deploy more tech resources to confront the problems advertisers face: not knowing whether their ads will appear next to offensive, hate-filled content on its network.

Google's woes continue to mount as AT&T and Verizon join a growing list of marketers suspending advertising with the company over concerns about extremist content on YouTube.

It's no secret that advertisers are increasingly demanding more transparency from their agencies, ad-tech vendors, publishers, and other partners. In addition, the issue of so-called "brand safety" has taken center stage, as brands' concerns over where their ads will appear online grows.

Storyful is a social marketing and news company that's trying to make sense of social media for publishers, marketers, and communications teams. A unit of media giant News Corp., it analyzes data from platforms like Facebook YouTube, Twitter, Reddit, and Weibo to find the most important trends and "news" in real-time.

"The obstacle that has challenged the industry in its shift from client-side to server-side header bidding has not been technology, but trust," according to a study released last week by Index Exchange.