The AdMonsters team is back for another week of intense courtroom drama in the Google vs. DOJ trial. We’re now deep into week three, and let me tell you, the plot has thickened faster than a bowl of your grandma’s gumbo.

Week 3 Overview

If you’ve been keeping up with the trial, you know we’ve already had heavy hitters taking the stand, spilling the tea on Google’s iron grip over the ad tech ecosystem. But this week? It’s all about the tangled mess of “ad tech spaghetti.” Google came out swinging in its defense, but rather than clearing things up, they managed to tangle themselves up even more. It’s like watching someone try to detangle a pair of headphones — they’re only making it worse.

Check out the AdMonsters Team breaking down the highlights of week 3 of the DOJ vs Google trial in the video below and you can also catch their weekly updates on YouTube.

Key Testimonies

Andrew Byrd jumped into a few polarizing testimonies, particularly from witnesses like Mark Israel. Israel defended Google, claiming regulators focused too narrowly on open web display advertising. He waved off the allegations like, “Look over there! TikTok! Facebook! Amazon!” — and suggested that competition from social media platforms and e-commerce sites like Facebook, TikTok, and Amazon was being overlooked.  He was saying just anything to divert attention from the real issue.

His argument that Google’s share of the online ad market had dropped from 15% to 10% over a decade due to a shift toward mobile and app-based advertising was… let’s just say, an interesting flex. Critics like Ariel Garcia from Check My Ads quickly noted that this defense overlooked the publishers’ plight, focusing too heavily on advertisers.

Publisher Concerns

Andrew further elaborated on testimonies from Kenneth Bloom from BuzzFeed, who, despite some nervous energy, praised Google’s ad display business. The over-reliance on Google’s tools is real, and it’s leaving publishers in a tight spot. There’s a clear tension—while some publishers benefit from Google’s ad tech, it’s a double-edged sword.

A viral LinkedIn post from Ariel hit the nail on the head: publisher revenue losses weren’t fully addressed in Israel’s defense, leaving his argument feeling like Swiss cheese — full of holes.

Eyewitness Accounts

To make matters worse, Yakira talked about when a Google project manager called a prominent ad tech journalist “stupid.” Talk about drama. These actions only underscore the growing tension and contradictions in the testimonies that have been the hallmark of this trial.

Internal Google Emails

One of the most damning pieces of evidence has been internal Google emails, which disclosed strategic advantages gained through acquisitions like DoubleClick. The DOJ used these documents to argue that Google’s market power resulted from deliberate actions to stifle competition, not just from good business practices. Oh no, say it isn’t so. Say it wasn’t a well-orchestrated game of Monopoly with Google holding all the prime real estate.

Judge’s Stance

Judge Brinkema isn’t letting anyone slide either. She’s been giving some Google employees the side-eye, openly questioning their credibility. You know things are getting shaky when the judge looks at you like Hmm emoji. This added yet another layer of drama to the proceedings, leaving Google’s defense team scrambling to keep their narrative intact.

The Complexity of Ad Tech

To wrap up the week, it’s clear the ad tech ecosystem isn’t just complex—it’s like the ultimate Choose Your Own Adventure novel. And guess what? Google isn’t just a chapter; they’re the whole darn book. Their fingers are in every part of the ad tech supply chain, from publishers to ad buyers, and everything in between.

Transparency Issues

Of course, transparency (or the lack thereof) is an elephant in the room. Key testimonies are happening behind closed doors and some trial documents are sealed. It’s giving major “black box” vibes. The public and the industry are left speculating about what’s really at stake.

Implications for the Future

So, there you have it. Week three’s tangled mess of spaghetti — that none of us would want to eat — unveiled a web of power plays and serious courtroom drama. We’ve got Google’s defense team spinning its wheels while the DOJ tightens the net around Google’s ad empire.

At its heart, this trial isn’t just about Google; it’s setting the stage for the entire ad tech industry. You can bet competitors like The Trade Desk are watching this soap opera unfold, taking notes on what not to do. Will this end with a Google split-up, or will they find a way to wriggle out of this like Houdini? Only time will tell.

Got thoughts on the trial? Head over to our Slack community polls and spill the tea. 

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With testimonies revealing Google’s deep grip on ad tech, we unpacked how this could reshape the industry and finally give publishers their due. Watch the full breakdown and get the highlights of the trial here.

Hey Monsters! We’re back with our coverage of week two of Google on Trial, and let’s just say it’s heating up like a summer block party.

This week, we peeled back more layers of Google’s ad tech dominance — revealing how publishers, once sidelined, finally have their grievances heard in court. If week one was the appetizer, week two served the main course, and the DOJ wasn’t holding back.

Catch the full video recap below…

Publishers: “Just Give Me My Money”

Last week’s testimony made it clear — publishers have been getting the short end of the stick. With Google controlling AdX, the biggest pool of premium advertisers, publishers don’t have much leverage. Even though there’s plenty of demand, publishers aren’t cashing in like they should. Between Google’s 20% cut and their alleged sneaky peeks at competitor bids during the First Look days, it’s no wonder publishers felt like they were being squeezed.

It’s like publishers were throwing the biggest club night, but Google controlled the guest list and took a big chunk of the door charge, leaving publishers with barely enough to cover the bar.

Even U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema bluntly asked: Does Google’s ad tech actually benefit publishers? Spoiler alert: according to the DOJ’s witness, if Google wasn’t meddling in the auction process publishers could’ve walked away with a lot more.

Unified Pricing Rules: A Straitjacket for Publishers

Next up, came the Unified Pricing Rules (UPR). Google sold it as a win for efficiency and innovation, but publishers tell a different story. Matthew Wheatland from The Daily Mail testified that UPR caused a dip in revenue per impression, leaving publishers gasping for air.

Sure, there was an uptick in overall revenue when UPR rolled out, but Wheatland pointed out that this likely came from a surge in web traffic, not from Google’s pricing rules. Without that traffic boost, the hit would’ve been much worse. He also noted that if The Daily Mail tried to move away from Google’s ad server, they’d be staring down a 28% revenue loss. That’s what happens when you’re locked in Google’s ecosystem.

Defense Buzzwords & Bingo Cards: Google’s Shield

Google’s defense team has relied on buzzwords like “brand safety” and “inventory quality” to paint themselves as the good guys.

Our friend Arielle Garcia over at Check My Ads spiced things up with her “Defense Buzzword Bingo,” turning this corporate showdown into a game — literally. But behind all the buzzword smoke, the truth is much harsher. Google’s “innovation” isn’t really about pushing the industry forward — it’s about maintaining an iron grip on ad tech.

Key Testimonies: Behind the Curtain of Ad Tech Monopoly

The courtroom spotlight shone on some big Google players last week. YouTube CEO Neal Mohan stepped in to explain the inner workings of Google’s ad tech strategy, tracing it back to the DoubleClick acquisition. According to Mohan, this acquisition was meant to drive innovation, making life easier for publishers and advertisers.  Sounds great, right? But the DOJ didn’t buy it. They pointed out that Google’s shopping spree — including acquisitions like DoubleClick and Admeld — was more about wiping out the competition than building better tools.

Mohan tried to defend Google’s habit of “parking” acquired companies, saying it was about letting them run independently while syncing up their tech. He swore Google’s rise came from “product innovation and services,” but the government painted a different picture — one where Google’s integrated ad stack turned rivals into roadkill.

Then we had Nirmal Jayaram, Senior Director of Engineering at Google, in the hot seat. Jayaram did his best to downplay internal documents showing how Google allegedly used AWBid to snatch up publishers from competitors. His testimony was jam-packed with buzzwords like “latency” and “brand safety,” contradicting earlier evidence about Google’s strategy. There was a big gap between what internal emails said and what was claimed in court. Classic Big Tech spin, if you ask us.

Publishers Finally Seen: The Trial’s Turning Point?

For the first time, publishers are stepping out of Google’s shadow, with their frustrations about ad tech monopolization being aired for everyone to see. As our brother from another mother, AdExchanger’s Anthony Vargas called it — publishers are feeling seen. The years of discontent, the quiet side-eye at conferences, the “let’s call up our Google rep” complaints? They’re now front and center. And it’s about time.

Global Implications: What Happens Next?

This trial isn’t just a U.S. thing. The ripple effects are being felt worldwide, from the U.S. courtroom to the EU, where regulators are watching with popcorn in hand. Sure, Google scored a small win in Europe last week, dodging a $1.66 billion antitrust fine. But don’t let them pop the champagne just yet — the global fight against Big Tech dominance is far from over.

Stay tuned as Andrew Byrd, Yakira Young, and Lynne d Johnson return to dive deep into week three of Google on Trial.

The post Google on Trial: Unpacking Week Two of the DOJ’s Case and What It Means for Publishers appeared first on AdMonsters.

The 2024 AdMonsters Dream Team comprises carefully selected industry powerhouses recognized for their exceptional innovation, dedication, and trailblazing spirit in turning digital ad challenges into realized revenue gold.

These ad ops wizards and revenue rockstars were chosen to represent who AdMonsters would hire if they were launching an ad ops team. They have earned their places among the best of the best, redefining the boundaries of possibility in the dynamic world of ad tech. The Dream Team will be celebrated at Publisher Forum Boston, taking place August 4-6, with roundtables, in-depth conversations and networking with fellow publishers.

Meet the 2024 Dream Team
AdMonsters is proud to introduce the inaugural members of the 2024 AdMonsters Dream Team and their appointed roles:

Scott Messer – CRO
Current: Principal & Founder, Messer Media

Matthew Kent – SVP, Client Services
Current: VP, Client Services, Tubi

Connie Walsh – SVP, Yield & Monetization
Current: VP, Advertising, Legacy.com

Linda Chen – VP, Revenue Operations
Current: Director, Programmatic Revenue Strategy, Chegg

Zip Nguyen – VP, Business Intelligence
Current: Business Intelligence & Yield Lead, BBC

Pooja Singh – VP, Data & Analytics
Current: Director, Data Science, Kroger Precision Marketing

Kevin Antoine – Head of Programmatic
Current: Head of Digital Inventory Optimization, Graham Media Group

Addy Atienza – Head of CTV Revenue Operations
Current: VP, Programmatic Revenue and Operations, Streaming TV, Trusted Media Brands

Catherine Beattie – Head of Mobile Monetization
Current: Director of Programmatic, WeatherBug

Lauren Farber – Head of Sales Operations
Current: Advertising Tooling & Infrastructure, Netflix

Kimberly Hall – Sr. Director, Ad Operations
Current: Director of Digital Ad Operations, & Technology, Farm Journal

Jasper Liu – Sr. Director, Yield Management
Current: Sr. Programmatic Yield Analyst, Daily Mail/Mail Online

Sarah Webb – Manager, Ad Products
Current: Ad Production Coordinator, Bloomberg

See the Dream Team and learn more here.

“We are absolutely thrilled to introduce the AdMonsters Dream Team, celebrating the top talent in digital advertising operations. These professionals have demonstrated exceptional innovation and dedication, embodying the essence of our community and charting the course for its future. We eagerly anticipate how their expertise will inspire and elevate the entire industry,” said Becky Peck, Group Publisher, AdMonsters.”

“The Dream Team initiative underscores our commitment to fostering excellence and leadership within the AdMonsters community,” added Lynne d Johnson, Content Director, AdMonsters. “By bringing together these industry leaders, we are creating a powerful platform for collaboration and growth. We can’t wait to see the magic they will bring to our events and the broader digital advertising landscape. We look forward to the innovation, leadership, and inspiration the 2024 Dream Team will bring to the AdMonsters community and the digital advertising industry at large.”

About AdMonsters Dream Team
The AdMonsters Dream Team program celebrates the most influential and innovative minds in digital advertising operations. Members are handpicked for their outstanding contributions and leadership in their fields. As Dream Team members, they will receive widespread recognition, participate in exclusive Publisher Forum events, and enjoy special privileges designed to further enhance their professional journey.

For publishers in the digital advertising industry, the Dream Team represents an unparalleled resource of expertise and innovation. The insights and leadership of these professionals will empower publishers to navigate the complex digital ad ecosystem, optimize their revenue streams, and enhance audience engagement. By collaborating with the Dream Team, publishers can stay at the forefront of industry trends and achieve sustainable growth.

About AdMonsters
AdMonsters is the leading community for digital advertising operations and revenue optimization. We provide insights, training, and networking opportunities to help professionals and organizations stay ahead in a rapidly evolving industry. With a focus on collaboration and innovation, AdMonsters is dedicated to supporting the success of its members and the digital advertising ecosystem.

Media Contact:
Trish Borrelli
Sr. Marketing Director
AdMonsters, AdExchanger and Folio:
tborrelli@accessintel.com

Visit admonsters.online/dreamteam24 for more information.

Follow @AdMonsters on LinkedIn for the latest updates and announcements.

The post AdMonsters Announces Inaugural 2024 Dream Team Picks appeared first on AdMonsters.

The 2024 Top Women in Media & Ad Tech will award 130 honorees, including: Sherry Weiss, Dow Jones; JiYoung Kim; GroupM; Kimberly Gilberti, Experian; Mandy Hunsicker Adams, The Home Depot; Crystal Johnson, Sonobi, Stephanie Layser, Amazon Web Services, and many more.

View the full list of 2024 Top Women in Media & Ad Tech Honorees.

The Top Women in Media & Ad Tech Awards feature two special recognition awards as the top honors of the 2024 program. These are the Industry Impact Award and the Catalyst Award.

Kamakshi Sivaramakrishnan will receive the Industry Impact Award, presented to an individual who has truly set the standards for creativity, innovation, and leadership throughout her career. As a pioneering female entrepreneur in ad tech, Kamakshi founded two companies and steered them to successful exits. She is the co-founder and former CEO of Samooha, a data collaboration company that was acquired by Snowflake in 2023. LinkedIn acquired her previous company Drawbridge in 2019. She spearheaded the integration process and led the identity charter for LinkedIn Marketing Solutions until 2021. Kamakshi’s impact reaches far beyond her own businesses. Since 2018, she has served on the Board of Directors at iHeartMedia, and previously held a position on LiveRamp’s board until 2020. She currently serves as a Senior Director of Product Management at Snowflake, leading the product vision and strategy for Snowflake Data Clean Rooms.

Samantha Jacobson, Chief Strategy Officer and Executive Vice President of The Trade Desk, is the recipient of the 2024 Catalyst Award, honoring a woman who has driven tremendous growth for her business and team over the past year. Samantha earned a seat on The Trade Desk’s Board of Directors in 2024. She’s led many of the company’s most strategic initiatives, including Unified ID 2.0, a new identity fabric that paves the way forward for the advertising industry, and Kokai, an AI-driven media-buying platform.

“The Top Women in Media and Ad Tech Awards spotlights the immense impact of women in the media and ad tech space. The women honored in 2024 are leaders, mentors and change agents in the industry, making a lasting mark on their teams, companies and the industry as a whole,” said Lynne d Johnson, Content Director of AdMonsters and the annual awards show host alongside Sarah Sluis, Executive Editor of AdExchanger. “In spotlighting their achievements, we shape how women in ad tech are seen widely.”

The Top Women in Media & Ad Tech Awards Gala will be co-located with the AdMonsters Ops Conference on Monday, June 3 at the Metropolitan Pavilion in New York City. The gala will take place in the evening, immediately following day one of the conference. To purchase tickets to the awards gala, click here. Individual tickets and tables of 10 are available for purchase. Table purchases come with priority seating and ensure attendees are seated together.

Tickets to AdMonsters Ops are available for purchase separately.

The post 2024 Top Women in Media & Ad Tech Honorees and Special Recognition Awards Announced appeared first on AdMonsters.

“Grouchy” Greg Watkins is the co-founder of AllHipHop.com, a website that has been doing successful business in the music space since its inception in 1997. The site’s mission continues to be the same as it was then, a place to share news, feature articles, and any other pertinent content for people who make and enjoy hip-hop. 

Most importantly, the site has an incredible reach, which it achieves largely thanks to Watkins’ knowledge and expertise in the online advertising space. Leading up to his talk at PubForum in Coronado Island, California, we caught up with Watkins to learn more about his career journey and how he is helping others learn the ins and outs of ad tech. 

Music & Technology Paved the Way for Watkins’ Career

Watkins says he knew he was destined to be a part of the music industry since he was only three years old, listening to tapes on his parents’ tape recorders at home. When he was just a kid, he also began tinkering with technology. 

“My dad had an old reel-to-reel machine in his basement that he listened to music on. He had transistor radios that I would take apart and look at,” he says. 

As he grew up and began getting involved in music, he started a recording studio. Then he went to the Art Institute of Philadelphia, where he received an Associate’s Degree in Music, Business, and Audio Engineering. 

By 1996, Watkins was pressing records and having success selling those online to people worldwide. That’s when he registered AllHipHop.com, which he originally conceived as a way to sell records but quickly morphed into the hip-hop news site it is today, with the help of his long-time business partner Chuck “Jigsaw” Creekmur.

Watkins Was an Early Adopter of & Believer in the Power of the Internet 

Witnessing the evolution of communication through the web via early programs like AOL convinced Watkins that the Internet would be the way of the future. At that time, he began reading trade publications to understand the ins and outs of this new communication tool. 

“By ‘96 or ‘97, I don’t want to say I was a veteran of the internet, but I knew my way around. At that time, I knew HTML, how to code, and how to make websites. I saw it as a logical step when I saw people buying the music online, and how it reduced my overhead by having a direct-to-consumer relationship,” he explains. 

That direct-to-consumer relationship completely changed how Watkins and his team sold music and connected with their audience. He knew then that the internet would change how we share news and information globally. 

Awareness of the Internet’s Advertising Potential 

If you asked Watkins back when he launched his website whether he would be so involved in ad tech today, he says the answer would be both yes and no. 

“I’ve been reading the trades since ‘94, 95. I visited San Francisco. I saw Yahoo in its early days before they were even a worldwide known brand – I saw cabs riding around with ‘Yahoo’ on top and billboards around San Francisco. That blew my mind that an internet company was marketing in that manner. That opened my eyes to see there is an advertising business here,” he shares. 

Even so, the urban advertising system was basically nonexistent until the year 2000, which is when AllHipHop.com began to dive into the world of online ads. Watkins notes, “I helped launch our first ad server. I bought it off the Internet, ‘software as a service.’” He began launching ad campaigns, doing the creative, HTML, and tracking codes with a small team of sales reps. 

At first, the advertisers were direct-to-consumer marketers, but AllHipHop.com landed a campaign with the anti-smoking organization The Truth. The money from that campaign helped the website hire more writers and salespeople who did brand cold calling. This eventually led to some big fish advertisers like American Airlines and Pepsi. 

“I did know that the advertising business would be big on the Internet and that this would be a way to directly speak to consumers in a way that possibly had never happened in media history. When you’re dealing with television, it’s usually a one-way transaction. When you’re dealing with the internet, especially at the time, you could develop actual relationships with these consumers, depending on what type of ad campaign you’re running,” he notes. 

Understanding the Supply Chain Leads to Success

Watkins says his biggest advice for publishers looking to succeed in this industry is to understand the supply chain we are all a part of. 

AllHipHop.com started as a direct selling business, then it began dealing with ad networks. When programmatic started, the supply chain became more complicated and less transparent. 

Ten years later, the supply chain has become even more complex and even wasteful, up to the billions of dollars in terms of waste spent by brands and agencies. This is what Watkins says he will be speaking to at PubForum. 

“There are a variety of headwinds impacting our industry right now that will probably be issues for the entire ecosystem in the supply chain for advertising over the next two years. Those are going to be some of the things I’m talking about and telling publishers: what to look out for, and how to avoid bad actors in the space. I’ll also be giving some actual testimonials,” he says. 

Making Ad Tech a More Inclusive Space

The lack of diversity and inclusion in the ad tech space confounds Watkins. “One thing that has always surprised me is the fact that Black, Latin, and other minority-owned businesses still have this difficulty in the 21st century having their audiences respected. We have huge audiences, yet only 1 percent of ad budgets go to Black and minority-owned and targeted websites.” 

For his part, Watkins makes it a point to take time out of his busy schedule to speak to college students and mentor minority owners of small businesses.

“I speak at HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) and colleges, in general to encourage the students to understand ad tech, one for the impact that it has on society and how we see ourselves, but two, there has to be human capital available for these companies to hire for change to happen,” he states. He believes it’s important to make sure these students know how low lucrative ad tech can be.

He also is involved with BOMESI, the Black Owned Media Equity and Sustainability Institute, which assists publishers with resources, grants, and training to help serve diversity, equity, and inclusion in the publishing industry. “I mentor a variety of these brands and some of their executives on what’s happening in the business,” Watkins says. 

To hear more about Watkins’ journey and his advice for publishers looking to succeed, make sure to attend his keynote speech, “Lessons From the Trenches: 25 Years as a Publisher Navigating Ad Tech,” at AdMonsters’ upcoming PubForum in Coronado, California on August 7. 

The post Ahead of His Time: How “Grouchy” Greg Watkins Leveraged the Power of the Internet Into a Successful Publishing Career appeared first on AdMonsters.

Cooper and Requidan will bring their podcast to the Miami Publisher Forum for their keynote, “Minority Report Podcast: Developing a Leadership Career in Digital Media and Ad Tech.” During the live session, Cooper and Requidan will sit down with Chris Contreras, Chief Customer Officer, MNTN, to talk about his career that has spanned the sell side, buy side, social media, and ad tech, as well as leadership roles at startups. 

The Minority Report Podcast Is Leaving a Legacy

Cooper and Requidan started their podcast in May of 2018. Since then, the pair has created one of the largest catalogs of leaders sharing insights and experiences gained throughout their personal and professional journeys. 

Each of the 150+ episodes have been impactful in different ways. For Requidan, some of the episodes that stand out are Bobby Herrera, co-founder and CEO of Populus Group and author of The Gift of Struggle: Life-Changing Lessons About Leading, reflecting on kindness to others; Arlan Hamilton, founder and managing partner at Backstage Capital, discussing opportunity funding, and Tiffany Warren, founder & president, ADCOLOR, about recognizing the creative industries. 

The Minority Report episode with Contreras will focus on his career development, from starting as a financial analyst at HBO to deep diving into the world of digital media and ad tech. Contreras is currently at MNTN, which builds advertising software for brands to reach consumers through the power of television, where he oversees the company’s customer success organization and operations.

Cooper and Requidan believe that attendees will find Contreras’s story fascinating, especially how he created a role for himself that helped springboard his career. Contreras is a huge advocate for DEI&B, and the episode’s conversation will explore what it means to be LatinX in the industry and why we need more diversity.

“I’m excited to hear Chris share more about a few topics, including servant leadership, diversity in the workplace, and mentorship. I think he does a great job of making sure it’s understood and there isn’t just one area to focus on. It’s several at once,” said Requidan.

Evolving Careers Across the Ad Tech Landscape

Cooper and Requidan bring extensive experience and expertise to the discussions on the Minority Report Podcast. Cooper has been in the ad tech and martech industry for 24 years. He is President of Advertising at Group Black, leading the advertising revenue and operations team, including sales, ad operations, and customer success. 

One of Cooper’s first jobs was as a telemarketer selling newspaper subscriptions. He describes the job as a humbling experience that taught him how to work with people from different walks of life and deal with situations that don’t always go your way.

“What I love most about our industry is the constant evolution over the past two-plus decades and the technology sitting at the center of that change,” said Cooper. 

Requidan has been in advertising, media, and tech for his whole career, with 13 years  working on the sell side for publishers and media companies and 10 years supporting content producers, journalists, media, and the free web as an essential services provider for publishers. Now, Requidan is the Founder and CEO of Media Tradecraft, a full-service ad management, and ad tech firm, and Principal at Tradecraft Advisory, a programmatic advertising advisory.

Requidan started in advertising as a sales assistant to a large team of sellers and managers, where he learned how to serve clients and customers and to follow amazing mentors and leaders. 

“Those work experiences and my family have taught me to be comfortable in leadership, strategy, and serving. I also learned the importance of hard work, kindness, and giving people a chance,” recalls Requidan.

Requidan’s early managers and coworkers took chances on him. He doesn’t have a four-year or advanced degree, yet every job he had required a college degree just to even apply. 

“I learned to be bold enough not to let the degree requirement stop me. At some point, hiring managers looked past that as well. They also looked past my different-looking last name, age, the color of my skin, and more,” said Requidan. “I eventually would direct teams of people, manage departments, head up divisions, build and rebuild entire media companies, launch startups, and lead publicly traded and private companies.”

Achieving Leadership Careers in Digital Media and Ad Tech

The live podcast with Contreras will focus on developing a leadership career in digital media and ad tech. For Cooper, the best leadership advice he received early in his career that helped him grow was to emulate those in an executive or leadership position. 

“Research those leaders to find out how they got to their position and their impact on the industry and company they work for. Add positive pieces of their game to your own,” advised Cooper. 

Requidan adds, “A lot of times, leadership is about serving and collaborating with others and bringing people together around objectives. Modern leadership also often requires empathy, emotional intelligence, perspective, agile thinking, and mental dexterity.” 

For Black History Month, AdMonsters named Cooper as an ad tech professional making waves and leaving his mark on the advertising and digital media industry. 

“I hope to see more black professionals enter ad tech, building great careers and taking on more leadership and executive positions … Many positions like advertising and revenue operations sit at the center of everything and can open career doors that aren’t immediately obvious,” said Cooper. 

When it comes to industry newcomers facing diversity challenges, Cooper advises,  “Challenge your organization to set goals and measure the impact.”  And, “Work where you are wanted and feel like you belong,” adds Requidan.

The post Publisher Forum Keynotes Kerel Cooper and Erik Requidan: The Co-founders Behind the Minority Report Podcast appeared first on AdMonsters.

Reflecting on everyone I spoke with, here’s what jumped out at me: Every discussion I had was focused on new hybrid domains where adtech is bumping up against some other ecosystem.

For the most part, folks seem to be done thinking about adtech as a standalone landscape; an arcane little island, if you will — disconnected from the broader tech world. Personally, I think this is great, if for no other reason than it’s going to keep things interesting.

The top three hybrid adtech domains I heard about over and over again were:

• Adtech + Cloud
• Adtech + (C)TV
• Adtech + Privacy

Why Are Hybrid Domains a Big Deal Right Now?

As a 15+ year-old domain, adtech has outgrown its insular and obscure beginnings.

Adtech and its adjacent domains have experienced such fantastic growth over the last several tech cycles that they are now overlapping. These overlaps are critical because they are where the most innovation is happening and where the next few years will be won or lost.

However, we’ve all become victims of our own success, forced to grapple with new unknowns brought on by unfamiliar domains and ecosystems that had, until somewhat recently, happily existed on their own little islands — often with underlying doctrines that aren’t naturally compatible.

Here are my thoughts on what’s driving the three hybrid domains I heard about the most at CES (adtech + cloud, adtech + TV/CTV, and adtech + privacy) as well as some of the tensions that are likely to crop up in the overlaps.

Adtech + Cloud

Whether it pivots around data clean rooms, data warehousing, or something else, adtech will be increasingly required to integrate with and augment clients’ cloud infrastructure on platforms like Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, and Snowflake.

Amazon, for example, recently made a major announcement at re:Invent in November 2022 revealing AWS for Advertising & Marketing. I considered this to be the official “coming-out party” for the hybrid adtech + cloud domain, even though the space had been building for some years.

But here’s the rub!

Cloud is backend IT infrastructure, intended to be as stable, accountable, and secure as possible.

Adtech, on the other hand, is designed to deal with the messy realities of monetizing and capturing human attention on the web. We’re basically talking about logic versus emotion. Maybe we all need to go back and rewatch some old Star Trek movies to see how Spock and Kirk managed to get along.

Adtech + (C)TV

It was inevitable that television would get digitized.

However, in 2022 everyone came to the realization that “Television with a capital T” —the kind of mass media we all grew up with— was back, baby!

Multiple previously subscription-only services like Disney+ and Netflix launched ad-supported tiers in 2022 to meet demand from consumers and advertisers alike.

But here’s the rub!

Adtech and TV are at extreme opposite ends of two important spectra:

• Barriers to entry — Adtech was initially designed to monetize relatively low- or unknown-quality content from a new medium with a near-zero barrier to entry: the web. By contrast, ad-supported television (both the content and the ads) has stratospherically high production values compared to even top-tier websites and apps.
• Context — Creatively and contextually the web is an open format; it’s a blank canvas with few rules. Ad-supported television, on the other hand, is a very constrained format consisting of fullscreen video content with interruptive commercial breaks.

The digitization of TV and its ads is exciting, but there will be some push and pull from both sides as adtech finds a path to supporting an “upmarket” medium while television (I would imagine reluctantly) gives ground by lowering the barrier to entry (YouTube and TikTok, anyone?) and opens up to more flexible content and ad formats.

Adtech + Privacy

In nearly all my meetings, privacy came up as a source of possible competitive advantage for adtech, either breathing new life into existing methods (e.g., creative testing) or as a path for new solutions like data clean rooms.

Everyone’s got their angle right now. Frankly, this is a great sign. Neither denial nor hand-wringing was ever going to move the ball forward, so it’s good to see everyone playing the hand they’ve been dealt.

But here’s the rub!

Competitive angles require confidence and context, and these in turn require knowledge. And guess what! Teams are still short on knowledge when it comes to privacy.

Why? I think there are two things going on that are causing “privacy literacy” to take longer to attain than many companies might have expected:

1. Technically, a lot of privacy changes are actually quite small but have disproportionately large impacts. For example, to understand the impact of the deprecation of third-party cookies, you have to understand the sheer weight of dependence that adtech placed upon their tiny TXT shoulders. It’s understandably not intuitive because that (over)dependence was truly and mind-bogglingly vast.
2. Adtech is used to charting its own course and being the trailblazer, but now privacy is being forced upon the ecosystem from the outside (by Apple! cough cough!). If you’re in an industry that’s accustomed to adapting to externalities all the time, you’re better at rolling with the punches. But for most of its history, adtech WAS the externality (just ask the newspaper business).

In short: there’s a ton of opportunity for adtech in privacy and everyone now knows it, but adtech’s going to have to work for the knowledge needed to unlock those opportunities.

What Did I Miss?

There are a ton of really interesting hybrid domains right now and I only talked to a tiny, tiny fraction of the attendees at CES. What else are you hearing about, working on, or struggling with? I’m curious to know. Find me on LinkedIn and let’s geek out.

The post Here’s What I Learned at CES: 2023 Will Be All About Hybrid AdTech Domains. Here Are the Top Three. appeared first on AdMonsters.

This time last year, advertisers started taking a closer look at OOH. While OOH used to make up less than five percent of clients’ media plans, it now eats up anywhere from 20 to 30 percent.

With a recession imminent, advertisers are confident that OOH will weather the storm, especially since OOH spending was up 38 percent from 2020-2021. For the first time, OOH now has the opportunity to work alongside data measurement tools to create even more effective advertising campaigns based on consumer buying behavior.

OOH will likely be at the forefront of marketing plans and strategy based on ad spend trends over the past two years. Why?

Because it now integrates innovative technologies that make it easier than ever to track marketing performance and see its return on investment (ROI).

Prediction: Just like Vinyl, OOH is Back

The tried and true OOH format is only improving, especially due to innovative new measurement tools offering extremely detailed consumer data points never before provided for the out-of-home format. TAB OOH Ratings, a new data measurement tool, Geolocation targeting tools, and new tech that can assist with planning and buying systems all help elevate a data-driven OOH campaign. 

There is more desire from advertisers and marketers to find ways of engaging customers that are less pushy and more organic. There’s an agreed-upon goal to create campaigns that feel like the customer is discovering the brand instead of the brand forcing campaigns down consumers’ throats.

OOH provides brands an opportunity to have an unfaltering real-world presence and offers opportunities to creatively reach target audiences through billboards, transit ads, and street furniture.

The current approach to digital advertising is too aggressive and doesn’t encourage trust between consumers and brands. Trust is needed to create long-term relationships and loyalty from the target audience.  

OOH provides brands an opportunity to have an unfaltering real-world presence and offers opportunities to creatively reach target audiences through billboards, transit ads, and street furniture. Data-driven OOH allows advertisers to plan campaigns more effectively and quantify the specific ROI the campaign delivered. 

How OOH Can Elevate AdSpend, Even During a Recession 

The state of the economy, and the world, is unstable. From global unrest to the recession to climate change, advertisers must be thoughtful about reaching consumers in a way that’s relevant to their day-to-day lives.

Smart advertisers understand that in order to get ahead, campaigns must resonate with audiences organically to bring in results. OOH delivers in the ROI category. For every $1 spent on OOH advertising, there’s $2.80 in sales result. 

The OOH format is the future — just like vinyl, the out-of-home format is being embraced as the new old-school way to reach consumers, that’s trendy and profitable.

The best way to spend dollars in a recessionary market is through investing in practices that reach consumers in a cost-effective way and encourage long-term loyalty and trust. Investing in OOH approaches can enhance ad spend, even during a recession because OOH significantly lowers the cost of advertising yet still generates profitable consumer data and conversion rates.

OOH also consistently maintained the fastest growth rate throughout Q3 of 2022 and saw top industries using the OOH format, including pharmaceuticals, entertainment, media, and technology. Regardless of industry, OOH is being used across a variety of verticals, which highlights its versatility and the ability to customize for any industry. 

The OOH format is the future — just like vinyl, the out-of-home format is being embraced as the new old-school way to reach consumers, that’s trendy and profitable.

In 2023, OOH is expected to stay hot because of its ability to engage with customers. A recent study around OOH noted that 70 percent of consumers say that OOH is very, or somewhat likely to influence a purchase decision. 

OOH advertising has always been highly effective. Now that we have the data to prove that, budgets are flocking to OOH more than ever. We expect this trend to continue as OOH takes a larger and larger portion of marketing budgets.

The post Why OOH Advertising Can Take a Campaign Further, Even During a Recession appeared first on AdMonsters.

The forum, which took place August 14-17, 2022, was informative and educational and included ounces of fun. At every PubForum, attendees take part in activities that are relative to the destination of that specific event’s locale. So in Montreal, both bike tourers and foodies got to taste the sweet delicious bagels that are made with honey water.

The four-day publisher forum presented attendees with the opportunity to link up with like-minded individuals and brainstorm and strategize on the best monetization practices for their media companies, while also talking about the most pressing topics, such as privacy regulations, Web 3, CTV, and many other issues impacting revenue professionals today.

Missed us in Montreal? This highlights reel captures the essence of #PubForum   Montreal, featuring peers learning, connecting, and solving problems together at a gorgeous destination

Our next PubForum takes place in Nashville, November 6-9. Get your ticket here: https://t.co/mA0fu7lxCW pic.twitter.com/OyXMtlDmb2

— AdMonsters (@AdMonsters) August 19, 2022

Publisher Forum Montreal Mini Recap

The event kicked off on Sunday with publishers participating in roundtable workgroups according to self-selected topics that were related to the size of their companies or ad ops teams, or their interests, such as programmatic strategy or client services. In these groups, the publishers networked and answered the daunting question, “Where do you see ad tech five years from now?” They provided really intriguing responses, like virtual reality TV becoming the new norm and there being a mega streaming service called DISFOXLUFLIX+. Hey, stranger things have happened, huh?

After convening on this topic, publishers and sponsors were invited to an enjoyable dinner in a high-ceiling room with an amazing ambiance and a jazz trio providing a melodious soundscape. And after dinner, attendees mingled on the roof deck of Fairmont The Queen Elizabeth, a luxury hotel in Montreal where Publisher Forum was held for the length of the conference.

Monday morning opened up with a profound keynote by Justin Killion, President of Complex Networks, about the justification of revenue diversification. He presented an elaborate explanation of Complex Media’s journey over the past 20 years up until now, including the many pivots the media brand has made on its journey from print, to web, to streaming to live events and the metaverse. Following his keynote, attendees were delighted with awe-inspiring publisher breakout sessions about leveraging your first-party data, audio advertising, and data clean rooms.

Later in the day, Jenny Conelly, Executive Vice President of Product & Technology, Penske Media Corp (PMC), shared tips with publishers about securing executive buy-in for new product investment. She also encouraged pubs not to be discouraged by the idea of building a first-party data strategy. You have to start somewhere!

Afternoon publisher breakout sessions focused on holistic revenue approaches, defining programmatic direct, and the wild, wild west of CTV. The final keynote of the day was presented by Ron Duque, Head of Advertising Technology and Ad Ops, WhetherBug, who spoke about mobile addressability in a post-ATT and post-cookie universe.

Then Tuesday morning, Sharon Harris, CMO, Ascential Digital, graced the stage to talk about how brand marketing has evolved, as well as the publisher opportunity in retail media as that sector is starting to dominate the growth of digital media ad spend. Harris emphasized the importance of companies being digital-first; otherwise, their relevance, profitability, and market share are at risk. Following her session, there were publisher breakout sessions that focused on the buyer/seller relationship, audience segmentation, the future of revenue ops, and the ops-to-product relationship.

Tuesday afternoon featured fun-filled activities for pubs guided by Montreal city tour guides. Some activities included a food tour, a historic walking tour, a bike tour, a boat outing, and a hiking tour. Tuesday night ended with another fantastic dinner on the water followed by an after-party.

The entire conference wrapped up on Wednesday morning as publishers lead their own workshop discussions with sessions about collecting first-party data, brand safety and content category taxonomy, revenue efficiency, header bidding, and more, followed by roundtable discussions covering such topics as programmatic sales, reporting and analytics, and outsourcing. And this is what PubForum is all about; sharing and learning from one another.

Top Tweets ICYMI

Here’s what attendees had to say on twitter.

We are very excited to have attended @AdMonsters Pubforum this year in our beautiful hometown of Montreal!

We also teamed up with Admonsters to host the official after-party in the old port.

Check out a recap of the event in photo below!#AdMonsters #PubForum #Publisher pic.twitter.com/y0VSRg9tch

— Sharethrough (@sharethrough) August 17, 2022

We’re three days into the @AdMonsters #PubForum and #SEBPO team members are soaking up the keynote addresses from industry visionaries, sessions and workshops.

We’re excited to bring actionable takeaways back to the office and our clients! pic.twitter.com/MuBAquEsUC

— SEBPO (@SEBPO_us) August 16, 2022

Thank you for the chance to speak. What a great event! #pubforum.

— Jenny Connelly (@jennyc) August 16, 2022

Jonathan Panjwani, Director, Ad Tech Partnerships & Solutions at @Audacy. Discussing the Adventures in Audio Advertising pic.twitter.com/npgSQy4AqO

— AdMonsters (@AdMonsters) August 16, 2022

Hello Contextual Targeting, My Old Friend w/ Robert Janes @ad_butler and Christopher Kenna @BA_Group_ #pubforum @AdMonsters pic.twitter.com/uJ0s56q9WB

— lynnedjohnson.eth (@lynneluvah) August 15, 2022

Great session at @AdMonsters Publisher Forum earlier today where our SVP of Publisher Accounts Ashley Wheeler spoke with @GoBrowsi‘s Sarah Ruxin and @LADbible‘s Sherzod Rizaev about balancing UX and revenue. pic.twitter.com/s04sz7hnqW

— Magnite (@magnite) August 15, 2022

What’s better than kicking off the week at @AdMonsters #PubForum? Kicking off your week by speaking about how #publishers are harnessing the power of #WebRewardedVideoAds at #AdMonsters Publisher Forum, of course! To learn more, click below! https://t.co/b4ifH7W66S

— Playwire (@playwire) August 15, 2022

The post AdMonsters Publisher Forum Montreal Highlights, Plus Top Tweets appeared first on AdMonsters.

In fact, at AdMonsters’ recent PubForum Virtual Summer there were two sessions that dealt with the topic: Operationalizing Inclusion and Minority Report Podcast: Live From AdMonsters Publisher Forum Virtual.

We caught up with Alicia Ray, Founder of The Ad Tech Collective, a community for Black people in ad tech to network and learn from one another within ad tech. She was a participant on the Minority Report Podcast Live session and she has some great ideas about how companies can get serious about their DEI efforts.

Lynne d Johnson: How did you get started in ad tech?

Alicia Ray: I actually ended up in ad tech like most people, by accident. I generally have a deep passion for media, advertising art and tech. I also firmly believe education unlocks experiences and I became very curious about what sat under the hood of many of the tools I leveraged during the early years of my career.

To give more context, I spent a great deal disappointing a lot of people by not pursuing a traditional career path. I spent my undergraduate years exploring fine art and graphic design—there was something about bringing concepts to life that was very intriguing to me. I eventually landed a few exciting opportunities to work in media and eventually completed my Master of Art in Interactive Media at Long Island University C.W. Post. After graduate school, I ended up taking a job in Product Marketing for a media company and from there explored a number of areas in Advanced TV and the rest has been history.

LdJ: What was the impetus behind launching the Ad Tech Collective?

AR: I have joined a number of orgs that catered to the needs of “minorities” across the tech, media, and advertising spaces independently. None of them truly focused specifically on the “Black experience” in ad tech nor did they address some of the specific challenges we face in the space.

Let’s keep it honest and straightforward, we have made genuine progress in penetrating the advertising, media, and tech sector, but racial diversity in the ad tech industry continues to grow at an unimpressive pace. Black people in ad tech are still underrepresented, often the “only” in their workplace with limited access to mainstream networks and opportunities.

I launched AdTech Collective last fall as a response to this niche vertical often left out of the bigger discussion and the idea that we were not in ad tech. While we are far and few between, I wanted people to know we were here and doing amazing work. I wanted us to be seen, have access to the resources and the networks to keep building, and unlock new opportunities.  

 LdJ: What are your main goals with the organization?

AR: My main goal with the organization is to create a safe space where Black people in ad tech and allies can connect, deepen our knowledge and unlock meaningful experiences together and change the face of the industry.  

To that end, this month, we launched our Lounge & Learn series to bring together the greatest minds in the industry for an informal virtual experience to learn, engage in thought-provoking discussions, and drive personal and professional development.

This month, our special guest was Walter T. Geer, Executive Creative Director VMLY&R, who shared how to push beyond boundaries to drive creativity and innovation. And for November, we invited Erik A Requidan and Kerel Cooper, the voices of The Minority Report Podcast, to discuss what the post-cookie adtech world looks like and what opportunity will come from it for marketers.

LdJ: Some might say ad tech suffers from what the rest of tech suffers from—that it’s a pipeline problem? What do you think of this argument and why is diversity, equity and inclusion important in ad tech? Is it good for business?

AR: I personally don’t believe it’s a pipeline problem. The Collective of about 300 people alone proves that we are here and more than qualified. I don’t believe companies are looking in the right places. With internal referrals being the top source for hiring this is problematic given the orgs are not diverse to begin with.

The lack of DE&I has resulted in a number of systematic barriers such as a limited network and access to resources that have a direct impact on our upward mobility. It doesn’t drive creativity or motivate us to show up and do our best work. DE&I allows any organization to operate at an optimal level. It encourages innovation and a more positive experience for employees overall. It is also necessary to be competitive in market. 

LdJ: Do you have any tips for advice for ad tech companies looking to get started with DEI efforts? We always hear it’s important  increase your talent pool, but how do companies get started with that when they don’t know where to look? What else should they be doing? I know PubMatic releases a diversity and inclusion report like some of the big tech companies do—how important are reports like these?

AR: Data is certainly important and key to inform our efforts to allow us to have a greater impact. It can also help companies answer unanswered questions or fill gaps in the strategy. I am not a trained DE&I practitioner, however, companies really need to make their DE&I initiatives a business imperative. While each has their own thoughts on what DE&I means to the uniqueness of their business it can’t just be a feel-good exercise without clearly defined goals and measures of success.

Companies should also think deeper about the implementation part of their DE&I efforts. This is the perfect way to engage the org and encourage everyone (the ones who care) to contribute to their overall success. Lastly, companies can also benefit from focusing on the pipeline of tomorrow—introducing a whole new world to students who wouldn’t have access otherwise.   

The post Tackling Ad Tech’s Diversity Problem appeared first on AdMonsters.