Mobfox

BuzzFeed CEO Talks Roll-Up; Insta Cracks Down On Fake Activity

BuzzFeed CEO Jonah Peretti floated a potential digital media roll-up, naming BuzzFeed, Refinery29, Vox Media, and Group Nine as candidates and suggesting a larger combined entity could command higher payments from social ad platforms. Instagram announced a crackdown on inflated engagement, using a machine-learning tool to remove fake likes, followers, and comments and to alert users when inauthentic activity is deleted, as part of a broader industry clean-up. Unilever CMO Keith Weed endorsed these changes, condemning dishonest practices that pollute the ecosystem. Separately, Spotify and Pandora indicated podcasts will be central to their next growth phase, arguing podcasts are cheaper to acquire than music and could divert dollars from the $14 billion broadcast radio market. The roundup also references reporting from outlets such as The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal on related industry shifts.

When It Comes To Mobile Programmatic, Buyers Are Behind

Mobile programmatic is expected to dominate digital display ad spend in 2018, but publishers and buyers face persistent kinks. The article notes that buyers still apply desktop tactics to mobile, revealing an education gap highlighted by Richard Welch, Flipboard’s head of programmatic advertising, at the Mobile Growth Summit in New York. It cites agencies like Cadreon, Spark Foundry, and OMD as examples of teams not fully aligned with mobile practices. The piece discusses private marketplaces versus the open exchange, app inventory concerns, and the potential of in-app, audience-based buying—though the buy side has not broadly adopted it yet. It also recounts TimeHop’s experience building a custom ad server, achieving a 35% video render rate, illustrating the technical challenges. Uber’s Bennett Rosenblatt notes lax checks for creative compatibility on exchanges, while advertisers increasingly block inventory without third-party analytics, underscoring that viewability remains non-negotiable for buyers.

Google Chrome's Ad Blocker Is a Nudge to In-App Advertising

Google Chrome’s upcoming ad blocker, slated to go live on February 15, 2018, will block intrusive online ads in line with the Coalition for Better Ads guidelines, targeting formats such as full-page interstitials, auto-playing sound and video, and flashing ads. The update underscores Google’s influence in shaping industry standards and is described as likely pushing publishers to pivot toward in-app mobile advertising. Proponents argue in-app ads offer better user experience, higher retention and click-through rates, improved data for targeting, and reduced fraud, while initial impact on desktop and mobile web ad revenues may be negative for publishers. The article notes that many publishers could adapt by embracing higher-quality inventory, or, in some cases, explore loopholes such as certain pop-ups not currently prohibited. With Google and Facebook solidifying their positions, the piece suggests in-app mobile advertising could become the dominant channel over time.