The players

Ad fraud and invalid-traffic prevention, built around a Traffic Quality Index (TQI) Score for every source.

Independent research firm whose ad-transparency reports have challenged platforms and verification vendors.

Attention metrics company scoring media placements on their likelihood to be noticed.

European ad verification company, bought by Scope3 in 2024 and then by Peer39 in 2026.

Audience measurement company for digital and TV, a long-time Nielsen rival.

Leading ad verification company checking that ads are seen, safe and served to humans; being bought by Nielsen.

Bot-detection company (formerly White Ops) that helped take down major ad fraud schemes like Methbot.

Major ad verification company, taken private by Novacap in December 2025.

TV and streaming ad measurement company challenging Nielsen as a currency.

Supply-path research firm that maps the programmatic supply chain for buyers.

Global TV audience measurement and media intelligence company, sold to H.I.G. Capital in 2025.

Eye-tracking attention research company.

Attention and viewability measurement pioneer, bought by Oracle in 2017 and shut down in 2024.

The century-old TV ratings company, private since 2022 and agreeing to buy DoubleVerify in 2026.

Fraud and compliance analytics for CTV, apps and web, known for app and privacy risk ratings.

Israeli ad fraud detection company serving publishers, platforms and advertisers.

Measures whether people in the room are actually watching the TV.

TV measurement and planning company offering an alternative currency to Nielsen.

Brand-suitability measurement for YouTube, TikTok, Meta and other social video.