DISPLAY ADVERTISING
DoubleVerify | August 25, 2022
DoubleVerify (“DV”) (NYSE: DV), a leading software platform for digital media measurement, data and analytics, today announced that the DV Fraud Lab has discovered a new variant of the Connected TV (CTV) advertising fraud scheme, LeoTerra – which it first identified in July 2020. The new variant spoofs IoT (Internet of Things) devices, including smart refrigerators and smart watches, in an attempt to hide fraudulent behavior. DV estimates that LeoTerra’s latest variant has cost unprotected advertisers up to $10 million this year alone.
“This latest iteration of LeoTerra shows how fraudsters are always looking for new ways to avoid detection,” said Roy Rosenfeld, Head of DV’s Fraud Lab. “It also highlights how easily they spoof millions of devices by simply rotating through device lists that are free and easily accessible online.”
LeoTerra is a server-side ad insertion (SSAI) scheme that is part of an extensive operation of SSAI schemes known as OctoBot. To spoof large numbers of devices, fraudsters often use online device information sources, where they download lists of devices and incorporate the device information inside their falsified ad requests. This makes it appear as if their fraudulent traffic is coming from millions of different devices.
In some cases, online device lists also include unique or invalid device information. The fraudsters behind LeoTerra downloaded an entire list of CTV and mobile devices from one of the popular online device information providers. This list, however, included more than just CTV and mobile devices – it also included IoT devices. Through the unique and invalid devices, DV accurately identified the fraudsters’ source for extracting their spoofed device data, catching the new variant and continuing to block its impact for customers.
“LeoTerra is continuously shifting patterns in its attempts to evade detection,” added Rosenfeld. “In the first half of 2022 alone, DV identified and flagged three new variants of the LeoTerra scheme. These three variants, including the one impersonating IoT devices, have spoofed more than 92 million devices during H1 and up to 3.5 million device signatures each day.”
Connected TV (CTV) advertisers in the US spent $14.44 billion last year on CTV1 and, at its current pace, that number is expected to grow to $27.5 billion by the end of 20252. As revenue opportunities in CTV grow rapidly, so does the opportunity for fraud.
“Unfortunately, CTV inventory is highly susceptible to fraud,” said Mark Zagorski, CEO, DoubleVerify.
“Unfortunately, CTV inventory is highly susceptible to fraud,” said Mark Zagorski, CEO, DoubleVerify. “Fraud usually follows the money – particularly in environments that lack data transparency, industry standards, and technology solutions to counter it. The CTV ad ecosystem is no exception.”
As the industry has become more aware of CTV fraud’s scale and impact, DV has seen fraudsters evolve to evade detection, with more schemes mutating or changing their initial approach. To date this year, for example, DV’s Fraud Lab has caught and stopped six new SSAI variants aimed at falsifying CTV traffic.
DV’s Fraud Lab — powered by a dedicated team of data scientists, mathematicians and analysts — performs ongoing detection and analysis of new types of ad fraud across channels in order to uncover the latest schemes as they occur. Through continuous analysis, scenario management and research, the Fraud Lab pinpoints the sites, apps and devices responsible for fraudulent activity and updates protection for DV clients in real-time.
About DoubleVerify
DoubleVerify (“DV”) (NYSE: DV) is a leading software platform for digital media measurement and analytics. Our mission is to make the digital advertising ecosystem stronger, safer and more secure, thereby preserving the fair value exchange between buyers and sellers of digital media. Hundreds of Fortune 500 advertisers employ our unbiased data and analytics to drive campaign quality and effectiveness, and to maximize return on their digital advertising investments – globally. Learn more at www.doubleverify.com.
Read More
DISPLAY ADVERTISING
MGID, PubMatic | August 23, 2022
MGID, the global advertising platform, and PubMatic (Nasdaq: PUBM), an independent technology company delivering digital advertising’s supply chain of the future, have today announced a new advertising partnership. PubMatic’s clients benefit from direct access to quality, brand-safe native video and display placements across MGID’s exclusive roster of premium global publishers, with an addressable audience of over 900 million unique monthly users.
To provide audiences with the best possible experiences, MGID’s advertising platform integrates directly with publishers’ websites to deliver non-intrusive, highly engaging native ads that blend seamlessly into editorial content and help drive incremental revenue.
Sergii Denysenko, MGID’s CEO, said: “As the industry consolidates its focus on user privacy, an increasing number of marketers are tapping into the opportunities that native advertising brings as they look to engage with consumers in a more meaningful way. Delivering highly targeted yet non-intrusive ad experiences has always been of huge importance to us, so we’re delighted to be partnering with PubMatic and bringing our solutions to even more advertisers around the world.”
Sergii Denysenko, MGID’s CEO, said: “As the industry consolidates its focus on user privacy, an increasing number of marketers are tapping into the opportunities that native advertising brings as they look to engage with consumers in a more meaningful way. Delivering highly targeted yet non-intrusive ad experiences has always been of huge importance to us, so we’re delighted to be partnering with PubMatic and bringing our solutions to even more advertisers around the world.”
PubMatic’s Jacqueline Boakye, Vice President, Customer Success, EMEA said: “Programmatic supply and identity solutions continue to fragment, and brands need technology solutions that enable them to reach addressable audiences, at scale, in premium environments. MGID’s direct integrations with publishers combined with PubMatic’s Media Buyer Console solution help agencies and advertisers gain direct access to highly engaged audiences at scale, enabling them to maximise return on their media investments.”
About MGID
MGID is a global advertising platform helping brands reach unique local audiences at scale. It uses privacy-first, AI-based technology to serve high-quality, relevant ads in brand-safe environments. The company offers a variety of ad formats, including native, display and video to deliver a positive user experience. This enables advertisers to drive performance and awareness, and publishers to retain and monetize their audiences.
Every month, MGID reaches 900 million unique readers, with 200 billion ad impressions, across 25 thousand trusted publishers. For more information, please visit: www.mgid.com.
About PubMatic
PubMatic (Nasdaq: PUBM) is an independent technology company maximizing customer value by delivering digital advertising’s supply chain of the future. PubMatic’s sell-side platform empowers the world’s leading digital content creators across the open internet to control access to their inventory and increase monetization by enabling marketers to drive return on investment and reach addressable audiences across ad formats and devices. Since 2006, our infrastructure-driven approach has allowed for the efficient processing and utilization of data in real time. By delivering scalable and flexible programmatic innovation, we improve outcomes for our customers while championing a vibrant and transparent digital advertising supply chain.
Read More
ADVERTISER CAMPAIGN MANAGEMENT
Roku, Inc. | September 23, 2022
Today, Roku, Inc. (Nasdaq: ROKU) announced that three senior executives have been named as presidents of the company’s media, devices, and consumer experience business areas.
Media industry veteran Charlie Collier will be joining Roku as President, Roku Media, effective in late October, based in New York. Under Collier’s leadership, Roku Media will reinforce Roku’s commitment to serving advertisers, content partners, and consumers across Roku’s market-leading streaming platform.
In addition, Mustafa Ozgen and Gidon Katz are being elevated from their current senior vice president roles at Roku. Ozgen will now serve as President, Devices, and Katz will now serve as President, Consumer Experience. Collier, Ozgen, and Katz will report to Anthony Wood, Roku Founder and CEO.
“As Roku grows internationally, these positions will help bring more focus to key areas of our business as the global shift to streaming continues,” said Anthony Wood, Founder and CEO, Roku.
“As Roku grows internationally, these positions will help bring more focus to key areas of our business as the global shift to streaming continues,” said Anthony Wood, Founder and CEO, Roku. “Charlie, Mustafa, and Gidon bring extensive industry knowledge and leadership experience to Roku. I look forward to working with them and their teams as we continue to innovate and build our position as the #1 TV streaming platform in the U.S., Canada, and Mexico* and our overall global footprint.”
In his new role, Collier will oversee the growth and evolution of Roku Media globally, which includes ad sales and Roku’s ad platform business as well as content for Roku’s owned and operated channels, including The Roku Channel.
Collier brings over 25 years of experience in media business leadership and transformation. He currently serves as the CEO of FOX Entertainment Group, where he is responsible for driving the overall vision and business at FOX Entertainment. He oversees the FOX network, FOX Alternative Entertainment, and FOX Entertainment Studios. He helped position the company as a leading content creator with a leadership position in ad-supported direct-to-consumer streaming. He contributed to growing Tubi, raising its profile and increasing the AVOD services original content offering. He also has helped lead several other business transformation initiatives, including TMZ, the founding of Studio Ramsay Global, the launch of Blockchain Creative Labs, and the acquisitions of Bento Box Entertainment, the animation company behind “Bob’s Burgers,” and indie studio MarVista Entertainment. Previously, he held senior roles at AMC Network, Court TV, Oxygen, and A&E Networks. During his tenure at FOX and AMC, both networks experienced increases in key business metrics, including ad revenue and ratings, Emmy Award-winning programming, and expansion of their digital platforms.
Alison Levin, Vice President, Ad Revenue and Marketing Solutions; Louqman Parampath, Vice President, Ad Product; Mirjam Laux, Vice President, International Advertising and Content; and Rob Holmes, Vice President, Programming will report to Collier.
Collier will also collaborate on commercial strategy with Tedd Cittadine, Vice President, Content Partnerships, who continues to lead Roku’s relationships with third-party apps and streaming services, and Gil Fuchsberg, Senior Vice President, Corporate Development & Strategic Partnerships, to whom Cittadine will continue to report.
“There is a tremendous opportunity to further accelerate and evolve Roku’s business as the streaming platform built for advertising, and Charlie is the ideal person to help us capitalize on the moment,” said Wood. “He is a proven leader who brings vast experience, a history of evolving businesses, strong creative instincts, talent relationships, and a track record of driving revenue and growth. He will play an integral role in helping us achieve even greater success as a next-generation media company.”
“Roku is a pioneer in streaming television and has achieved scale and significant relationships with our partners that will continue to be unique and valuable at this pivotal time in the industry,” said Collier. “As a partner of Roku, I’ve seen firsthand the power and potential the platform provides advertisers, partners, content creators, and consumers. I’m eager to work with Roku’s talented team to continue to innovate, grow, and bring the company and its partners to the next level.”
Prior to joining FOX, Collier was President and General Manager of AMC, SundanceTV, and AMC Studios, overseeing the creative and business operations of all three divisions. While he was at AMC, the network and business transformed, growing all key metrics and scoring creatively with hits including the Emmy Award-winning "Mad Men," "Breaking Bad," and "The Walking Dead." Collier also held business and sales roles at Oxygen Media, A+E Networks, and TeleRep. Since 2019, Collier has been named to The Hollywood Reporter 100, the publication’s list of the most powerful people in entertainment. He is regularly featured in Variety’s edition of Variety500, an index of the 500 most influential business leaders shaping the global media industry.
Gidon Katz, President, Consumer Experience, who joined Roku in 2022 as senior vice president of Consumer, leads Roku’s Consumer Experience team, overseeing product, customer journeys, editorial, customer marketing, payments, and merchandising. Prior to joining Roku, he was President of Direct to Consumer for NBCU, launching Peacock in the U.S. Before moving to the U.S., Gidon led Sky’s streaming service Now for six years, having previously launched Virgin Media’s VOD service.
Mustafa Ozgen, President, Devices, joined Roku in February 2019 as senior vice president and general manager of account acquisition, overseeing key programs like Roku TV, Roku Players, Roku Ready Soundbars, and more. Ozgen joined Roku from SmartKem, a producer of semiconductors used in flexible displays, where he served as CEO. Previously, he served as CEO of QD Vision, a nanotechnology materials company, which was acquired by Samsung. Earlier in his career, Ozgen held senior management and engineering roles at Sigma Designs, CSR, Zoran, Oak Technology, TeraLogic, and WindRiver Systems. He also served for seven years as an officer in the Turkish Navy.
About Roku, Inc.
Roku pioneered streaming to the TV. We connect users to the streaming content they love, enable content publishers to build and monetize large audiences, and provide advertisers with unique capabilities to engage consumers. Roku streaming players and TV-related audio devices are available in the U.S. and in select countries through direct retail sales and licensing arrangements with service operators. Roku TV™ models are available in the U.S. and in select countries through licensing arrangements with TV OEM brands. Roku is headquartered in San Jose, Calif. U.S.A.
Read More