GroupM launches Supply Path Optimization initiative

The initiative has been launched by GroupM to give brands and advertisers across the Asia Pacific region more visibility into the programmatic supply chain.

The GroupM project is the result of an effort to inject more transparency into the programmatic buying process.

A study by the Incorporated Society of British Advertisers (ISBA) in May uncovered that up to 15 per cent of UK advertising spend cannot be accounted for and a lack of standardization around data capture and storage.

This window into programmatic operations brought up questions for the entire industry about how revenue is earned. Over a period of six months, GroupM gathered data into a single visualization tool. The process included onboarding the log-level data from over 400 demand-side platform (DSP) seats at an APAC level and consolidating it into a centralized warehouse to ensure data consistency. 

John Miskelly, APAC investment director, GroupM said, “We wanted to take a rigorous and focused approach to supply curation and apply it across all APAC markets. GroupM has led the way in this area working with select supply-side platforms (SSPs). Now, we know every dollar that is spent across each market, DSP, and SSP down to the domain level." 

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GroupM has also developed a set of guiding principles to improve transparency through the creation of the supply path optimization tool. The number of SSPs included has been limited to those who agree to a code of conduct, only have direct integrations with publishers and never send inventory as unknown or obfuscated domains. SSPs also have to provide the log-level data for campaigns so that it can be matched against DSP data. 

GroupM aims to become 100 per cent ads/apps.txt compliant and support Open Measurement SDK as well as VAST 4.1 and higher. The group is also working with a select set of SSP partners as well as premium local publishers, to integrate header bidding into their programmatic setup. 

"Superior supply integration methods like header-bidding allows GroupM and our clients to unlock significant efficiencies in programmatic buying. The SPO practice does not only just allow us to buy more transparently, but also unlocks efficiencies of scale, thus benefitting all stakeholders. At GroupM, we have planned several market-first initiatives to drive value for our client’s digital investments, some of which we will unveil in 2021" said Deepak Tahiliani, Head of Digital Trading, GroupM India.

"In our stated objective to provide the best value to our clients, SPO is yet another market-first initiative from GroupM to help drive transparency, efficiency, and accountability in programmatic buying. With programmatic and performance right up the alley for our focus area’s for growth, this strategy sits in perfectly well", said Tushar Vyas, President – GroupM South Asia.