Publishers question whether agentic media buying can deliver real ROI
· 2h ago · Originally reported by Digiday
Agentic media buying, where AI agents plan and purchase advertising, has generated significant hype across the ad industry. However, some publishers remain unconvinced the technology will translate into meaningful revenue, questioning whether promised efficiencies will actually benefit the sell side.
Why it matters
If AI agents take over how ads are bought, publishers need assurance those dollars still flow to them. Publisher skepticism suggests the agentic shift may be slower and less lucrative than vendors claim.
Explain it like I’m new here
It's like everyone raving about a new robot shopping assistant, but shop owners aren't convinced it will actually bring more customers through their doors.
Terms in this story
Publisher
A publisher is any owner of content or a digital property, such as a website, app, streaming service, podcast or screen network, that earns money by selling ad space to advertisers.
Creative
A creative is the actual ad content a person sees or hears, such as an image, video, audio spot, HTML5 animation or native text, delivered into an ad slot.
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