Unified Auctioning, Targeting, and Real Time Bidding (RTB) Rules

Get to know Smaato’s OTT Line Items functionality! With Line Items, publishers can execute a unified auction to help boost eCPMs.

What are OTT/CTV Line Items?

Our platform is built with fully-customizable targeting parameters (also called “Line Items”) to give our publishers more control over their inventory and OTT/CTV monetization strategy. With OTT/CTV Line Items, Publishers can assign demand to their OTT inventory, set specific targeting parameters (like date, time, and traffic allocation), set auction rules and restrictions, and execute a unified auction of Smaato demand, third party demand, deals, and direct campaigns. As a result, publishers can better price inventory, and maximize fill rates and revenue.

This helps boost eCPMs, configure deals, A/B test, set who sees ads, and ensure the right advertising content (and ad-break length) for specified audiences.

RTB Rules on the Smaato Platform

The Smaato Platform allows you to set the following parameters:

Traffic Allocation: Publishers should be able to configure their share of voice. Choose to what percent of traffic these rules apply.
Date Targeting: Select a date or date range (for example, December 1-31).
Day Targeting: Opt into specific days or day ranges (such as every Tuesday and Thursday, or Weekdays only, or Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, and so on).
Time Targeting: Pick a time slot or a range (like, daily at noon, or 7:00 – 9:00 AM).
Floor Price (for targeted eCPM): Set a minimum floor price you want demand sources to bid above. Or, set an average eCPM you want bid prices to average out to for an increased amount of valid bids.
Inventory Targeting: Choose parameters like by pod or slot position.
Geo Targeting: Segment your viewers by country (state, city, DMA, county, and ZIP coming soon)
Advertiser Restrictions: Protect your brand with advertiser gating
Ad Category Restrictions: Maximize ad quality with creative category gating

The result? You can end up with intense granularity, such as the second slot of every other pod on Thursday mornings, 7:00 – 9:00 AM in December, with a targeted eCPM of $12.

These controls enable publishers to better price their inventory, and to set up auction rules for each of these targeting cases.

You can apply these rules and targeting parameters to all line items. This includes deals on Smaato Exchange/Open Market, Preferred Deals, Direct/House deals, and Third Party VAST tags/Network Line Items. Plus, they can be applied to Header Bidding Solutions like Prebid and Unified Bidding.

Getting Started: How to Set Up Targeting Parameters in SPX

Setting up targeting parameters (or, “creating a line item”) is simple in SPX. In just three steps, you can get started.

Step 1 – Create a Line Item

Depending on what kind of deal you’d like to create, first select the corresponding deal type tab.

There are four to choose among:

Smaato Exchange: Under the “Smaato Exchange” tab, you can create a Smaato Exchange (Open Auction), Private Exchange (PMP), or Preferred Deal (PD) line item.
Direct: Under the “Direct” tab, you can create a Direct (Direct Campaigns from advertisers) or House (promo ad) line item.
Network: Under the “Networks” tab, you can create a Network (third party SSP demand – VAST tag) line item.
Header Bidding: Under the “Unified Bidding” tab, you can create a Unified Bidding (third party SSP demand – Prebid Server) line item.

Step 2 – Configure Your Line Item

Then, configure share of voice, capping, targeting, restrictions, and price floors for your line item.

Step 3 – Target Your Line Item to OTT Inventory

Finally, assign your level to your OTT inventory. You can assign line items to your VOD Ad Pods (whole pod), VOD Ad Slots (individual commercials), and/or LIVE Ad Breaks (whole pod for mid-roll live avails).

Click save, and that’s it!

Learn More

To learn more about RTB rules and targeting parameters, or for help setting up these line items in SPX, please contact your Account Director.

Finally, you can also learn more about setting up line items in SPX Line in our developer docs.

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3 Minute Read | October 18th, 2021

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