Observed Signal · Feb 15, 2023 · Technical Release · Source: Quo Vadis News · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Negative
Three Top Tips for 2023: Tip #3
This Quo Vadis newsletter Tip #3 analyzes working media cost waterfalls in programmatic ad tech. It defines three waterfall types: Type 1 (Manual data in Excel), Type 2 (Automated log-data with a neutral server), and Type 3 (Type 2 plus marketer-run content verification). A detailed $10 budget example illustrates how fees and costs from AORs, agency management, verification, DSP tech, SSP take, and publisher shares can reduce funds, resulting in only about $0.97 of working media (roughly 9.7%) in actual advertising. The piece argues that Type 2 log-data processes yield true transparency, while Type 1 yields little value. It critiques MFA and bot fraud, cites ISBA/PWC waterfall research, and promotes BATNA-based negotiation and a plug-and-play Google Sheets working-media model for subscribers to improve cost transparency and decision-making in 2023.
Technical analysis of cost waterfall transparency; relevant for AdTech practitioners but not industry-shifting.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Three cost waterfall types are defined: Manual (Type 1), Automated (Type 2), and Type 3 (Type 2 with marketer verification).
- A $10 budget example shows fees and costs reducing funds to about $0.97 in working media.
- Type 2 log-data waterfalls are presented as the true path to transparency; Type 1 is described as largely ineffective.
- The piece critiques MFA and bot fraud in programmatic auctions and cites ISBA/PWC waterfall study references.
- Quo Vadis provides a plug-and-play Google Sheets working media model for subscribers and discusses BATNA as a negotiation approach.
Connected Companies & Entities
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Related Market Signals & Shifts
Recent verified developments and strategic activity across this market segment.
Walmart outlines plan to dominate TV advertising
Walmart is aggressively expanding its retail media ambitions into TV advertising. The retailer, which acquired Vizio for $2.3 billion two years ago, is now building a streaming ecosystem that includes the recent acquisition of adtech firm Vibe.co for $1.4 billion. Walmart Connect, the retailer's ad business, is pitching itself to non-endemic advertisers, leveraging Vizio's smart TV OS and Vibe.co's performance-focused streaming platform. New partnerships with Skydance and Spotify aim to extend reach, and the Yahoo DSP integration is moving to alpha. Walmart's U.S. ad business grew 38% YoY in Q2, and the company is positioning its first-party commerce data as the key differentiator for TV ad targeting and measurement, even for brands that don't sell at Walmart.
Olyzon Launches Agentic Orchestration Platform for Advertising
Olyzon, an agentic orchestration platform for advertising, has launched its technology live in market, optimizing real advertising campaigns. The platform enables agencies and brands to orchestrate media budgets across CTV, YouTube, social, digital audio, and DOOH from a single interface, integrating with existing DSPs, SSPs, and measurement partners. It is positioned as a working example of a Unified Media Platform (UMP), connecting systems that previously operated in silos. Key integrations include Amazon DSP, DV360, The Trade Desk, Yahoo DSP, Universal Ads, Vibe, Spotify, PubMatic, Swivel.ai, DoubleVerify, Xpln, Lucid, and Innovid. The launch was announced at Advertising Week New York.
Former Utiq and Xandr/Microsoft Leader Joins illuma for AI Scaling
illuma, a London-based AI company specializing in contextual decision intelligence, has appointed Michel Guillon as head of solutions architecture. Guillon brings two decades of adtech leadership experience from Utiq and AppNexus/Xandr/Microsoft, where he worked closely with illuma's integrations. His role will help partners integrate illuma's contextual intelligence into their systems at enterprise scale, leveraging his deep knowledge of DSP and SSP architecture and data interoperability. illuma's AI technology is used by brands, agencies, publishers, and platforms to optimize advertising decisions in real time, and is available through major platforms including The Trade Desk, Equativ, Index Exchange, Amazon, DV360, Yahoo, OpenX, PubMatic, and Magnite. The appointment underscores illuma's expansion across leading advertising platforms.
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