The ad tech glossary
309 terms, each answered in one sentence, then explained properly with an analogy and a worked example.
AllBasicsProgrammaticInvalid traffic & fraudMeasurementData & identityPrivacy & regulationCTV & videoMobile & appRetail & commerceFormats & creativeBusiness & financeSearch & socialSupply chainAudio & DOOH
A
- ACR (automatic content recognition)
- ACR (automatic content recognition) is technology, often built into smart TVs, that identifies what is on screen by matching audio or video fingerprints, used for audience measurement and ad targeting.
- Ad pod
- An ad pod is a group of video ads played back to back in a single ad break, like a traditional TV commercial break, common in CTV and long-form streaming.
- Addressable TV
- Addressable TV is the ability to show different ads to different households watching the same programme, based on data about each household, across set-top boxes, smart TVs or streaming.
- AVOD
- AVOD (advertising-based video on demand) is streaming video that viewers watch on demand for free or at reduced cost, funded by showing ads before or during the content.
C
- CSAI (client-side ad insertion)
- CSAI (client-side ad insertion) is when the video player on the viewer's device requests and plays ads itself, pausing the content to switch to a separately loaded ad.
- CTV (connected TV)
- CTV (connected TV) is any television connected to the internet, such as a smart TV, streaming stick, games console or set-top box, and the advertising shown in streaming apps on it.
- CTV fraud
- CTV fraud is ad fraud targeting connected TV and streaming inventory, such as spoofed apps, fake devices, SSAI spoofing and infected streaming boxes, exploiting CTV's high prices and harder verification.
F
- FAST (free ad-supported streaming TV)
- FAST (free ad-supported streaming TV) channels are free, linear-style streaming channels with scheduled programming and ad breaks, delivered over the internet to smart TVs and apps.
H
- Household ID
- A household ID is an identifier representing a home and the devices in it, rather than one person, used mainly in CTV and addressable TV for targeting, frequency capping and measurement.
I
- Instream video
- Instream video is a video ad that plays within a video player before, during or after video content the viewer chose to watch, such as pre-roll, mid-roll or post-roll.
L
- Linear TV
- Linear TV is traditional scheduled television, broadcast, cable or satellite, where viewers watch programmes at the time the channel airs them, with ad breaks sold to all viewers of that channel.
M
- Mid-roll
- Mid-roll is a video ad or ad break that plays partway through content, interrupting it, like a traditional TV commercial break.
O
- OTT (over-the-top)
- OTT (over-the-top) means video and audio content delivered over the internet directly to viewers, bypassing cable, satellite or broadcast distribution, and watchable on any device.
- Outstream video
- Outstream video is a video ad that plays outside of video content, for example within an article, a social feed or between paragraphs, usually auto-playing muted as it scrolls into view.
P
- Pre-roll
- Pre-roll is a video ad that plays before the content the viewer chose to watch begins.
S
- SIMID
- SIMID (Secure Interactive Media Interface Definition) is an IAB Tech Lab standard for adding interactive elements to video ads, while leaving the video player in control of playback.
- SSAI (server-side ad insertion)
- SSAI (server-side ad insertion) stitches video ads directly into the content stream on a server before it reaches the viewer, creating seamless, TV-like playback that ad blockers find hard to detect.
- SVOD
- SVOD (subscription video on demand) is streaming video paid for by a recurring subscription, traditionally without ads, such as the ad-free tiers of Netflix or Disney+.
U
- Upfronts
- Upfronts are annual events and negotiations, mainly in the US, where TV networks and streaming services present upcoming programming and advertisers commit budgets in advance for the coming season.
V
- VAST
- VAST (Video Ad Serving Template) is the IAB Tech Lab standard XML format that tells a video player which ad to play, where to fetch it and which tracking events to report.
- VMAP
- VMAP (Video Multiple Ad Playlist) is an IAB Tech Lab XML standard describing where ad breaks fall in a video, such as pre-roll, mid-roll and post-roll slots.
- VPAID
- VPAID (Video Player-Ad Interface Definition) is an older IAB standard letting interactive ad code run inside video players, now deprecated in favour of SIMID and OM SDK.