In this report we provide an overview of the native advertising ecosystem, with a specific focus on native advertising delivered programmatically. We touch on the native advertising market size, key vendors in the space, recent updates from incumbent advertising companies like Facebook, Google, Yahoo & Twitter, and key challenges and opportunities within the native ads market.
2. Three key takeaways from this report
Native is not ‘display 2.0’
— it’s a novel format with
unique advantages and
challenges
- Native ad units conform to a site’s look and
feel, often yielding better user engagement;
in a recent Sharethrough/IPG study,
consumers viewed native ads 52% more
frequently than banner ads
- However, the creative process, pricing
model, success metrics, and user
experience with native advertising
programs challenge traditional display
advertising execution patterns
- According to IHS, native will account for
63% of all mobile advertising spend by
2020
- Facebook has reported that 83% of
impressions on its mobile-only
Audience Network are in the native
format & that native ads perform 6x better
than traditional banner ads
- According to Business Insider, advertisers
will spend $5.7B on programmatic
native by 2018 — but large buying
platforms have been slow to integrate
native into their offerings
- We expect the omnichannel demand-side
platforms to accelerate integrations with
native vendors in the back half of 2016
Native works best in
mobile environments,
where banner CTRs are
near zero
The rise of ‘programmatic
native’ is being limited by
sluggish adoption on the
buy side
4. What is native advertising?
4
Native advertising is a form of paid
media where the ad experience follows
the natural form & function of the user
experience in which it is placed.
Source: Sharethrough
5. Advertisers have reported better performance with native ad formats relative to display
5
-
Engagement
- - -
Brand Lift Consumption Purchase Intent
ROI for app installs &
conversions
2x
Native ad units conform to the
design and feel of the sites on
which they are shown, preserving
the user experience while
producing click-through rates
similar to that of editorial content.
Brand lift is an increase in
interaction with a company as a
result of an advertising campaign,
and is used to pinpoint positive
shifts in customer awareness and
brand perception.
Increase in depth of visit &
time spent
3x
Marketers writing native ad copy
need to tell stories in the same way
that an article would. The only
difference is that in this case,
they’re telling the story of their
brand.
Source: StackAdapt, IPG & Sharethrough
3.2s
Time spent viewing native ad
Lift in purchase intent
18%
Increase in brand affinity
vs. display advertising
9%
By providing complementary
content to an audience on a
relevant site, and providing
context for the purchase, the
chances of the ad being more
successful are higher.
6. Native ad formats shine on mobile devices, where traditional display advertising is ineffective
6 Source: Sharethrough
The rise of native advertising can be largely attributed to the dramatic shift in consumer attention away from desktop PCs to mobile
devices & content feeds
1
2
3
Listening
to Radio
Watching
Television
2.9
2.3
1.61.5
0.4
Daily Consumer Media Consumption, US
HoursSpentperDay
Newspapers/
Magazines
Online via
Desktop
Using Mobile
Device
We spend nearly 3
hours per day on our
mobile devices
- Facebook reported that native inventory on its Audience
Network fetches 6x higher CPMs compared to banner ads
- Native ad units can adapt to the many novel user interfaces
introduced on mobile devices, improving overall ad
performance
Mobile Native Ads Outperform Traditional Banners
7. As a result, native is expected to represent nearly two-thirds of mobile ad spend by 2020
7
25%
50%
75%
100%
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
37%39%40%43%47%48%
54%
68%
86%
63%62%60%57%53%52%
46%
32%
14%
Native Mobile Ad Spend Non-Native Mobile Ad Spend
Native Share of Total Global Mobile Display Advertising
Source: IHS
ShareofSpend(%)
8. Many publishers are embracing native as a means of driving digital revenue
8 Source: Digiday, Adweek
-
“With 60-plus percent of
our digital revenue tied
to sponsor content, it is
important that we have
similar capabilities to
publish and promote
natively in the format.”
Kimberly Lau,
VP and Digital GM
-
Vice has always been more successful
when it's done native advertising and
interesting custom partnerships with
brands, and then you extend that idea
to this TV network also. […] Viceland is
hoping to have native ads as half its
ad inventory within the year.”
Guy Slattery,
Viceland GM
-
“Already, most of BuzzFeed’s
revenue is derived from BuzzFeed
Creative, the company’s 75-person
unit dedicated to creating for brands
custom video and list-style advertising
content that looks similar to its own
editorial content.”
Jonah Peretti,
Founder & CEO
Media companies like Buzzfeed were purpose-built to monetize using native ad formats, and many publishers are following suit
9. Several models for delivering native advertising have emerged to serve all publisher types
9
Lots of traffic
consolidated to
few sites
Limited traffic
distributed across
many sites
Native in-feed ad units have become popular across social networks, and many adtech vendors have emerged to help publishers
integrate similar ad formats on their properties
Social ad platforms
Large publishers or social networks that have
developed automated advertising tools for
buying native ad placements
1
Sponsored content placements
Premium publishers with dedicated “branded
content” teams that work with advertisers to
develop unique native content
2
Intermediated native platforms
Technology platforms that can be integrated
onto publisher sites that allow advertisers to
programmatically purchase native placements
3
10. Native ad spend on intermediated (3rd party) ad platforms is expected to reach $5.7B by 2018
10
$5
$10
$15
$20
$25
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
$5.7
$3.9
$2.7
$1.9
$1.3
$1.0
$3.4
$3.7
$2.0
$1.3
$1.0
$0.8
$11.9
$10.7
$9.2
$7.5
$5.6
$2.9
Social Ad Platforms Sponsored Content Intermediated Native Platforms
Native Advertising Spend by Type (US Desktop & Mobile)
Source: Business Insider Intelligence estimates, Internet Advertising Bureau
AdSpend(BillionsUSD)
$21B Native Ad
Spend by 2018
11. - Low cost ad placements typically
on long-tail sites
- Demand sources are often
“spammy” in nature (i.e. malware,
weight loss supplements, or
passing traffic to ad-heavy sites)
- CPMs: $0.50-$1
- Advertising that is intended to
drive a conversion event, typically
an install, registration or
transaction
- Demand sources are often app
developers or e-commerce sites
- CPMs: $1-$4
- Content created by an advertiser
that is designed to educate
consumers or build awareness
- The content is typically hosted by
the advertiser and promoted across
relevant publishers
- CPMs: $8-$12
- Content created by the publisher or
their in-house team tasked with
developing content brands
- The content is typically hosted on
the publisher’s site and mimics the
look-and-feel of a traditional article
- CPMs: $20-$40
Many advertisers have embraced native, although CPMs & success metrics vary widely
11
High CPMsLow CPMs
Content Marketing Branded ContentDirect ResponseTraffic Arbitrage
Much of the early buyers of native inventory have been direct response advertisers focused on driving a specific action, like sign-ups
or app installs
Source: Thomvest Research
The Spectrum of Native Advertising Demand Sources
13. What is ‘programmatic native’?
13
Programmatic native is the automated
buying and selling of native ads across a
range of platforms, devices & advertiser
solutions, relying on an open specification
to enable real-time bidding between
multiple parties.
Source: IAB
Bid Response
Icon
Image
Headline 1
Description
ActionLink
Bid Request
Publisher
User Information
Context
Placement Type
Required Assets
Real-time
bidding
1, User opens app &
impression sent to
native exchange
2. The bid request
is sent to buyers
on the exchange
4. Assets from the
winning bid are
assembled
3. Buyers submit bid
responses that include
native ad assets
How Programmatic Native Works
14. Programmatic native ad spend is expected to grow rapidly relative to display advertising
14
$5
$10
$15
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
$5.7
$3.9
$2.7
$1.9
$1.3$1.0
$6.4$6.5$6.1$5.8$5.3$5.2
Programmatic Display Spend Programmatic Native Spend
Programmatic Native vs. Display Advertising Spend (US Desktop & Mobile)
Source: Business Insider Intelligence estimates, Internet Advertising Bureau
AdSpend(BillionsUSD)
Native is projected to
grow at a 42% CAGR
15. Programmatic native will allow for buying and selling at scale
These factors enable
‘Programmatic Native’
1
Open, widely adopted, open standards for buying
and selling native inventory
2
Broad availability of native ad formats that
conform to these standards
3
Native inventory available to advertisers on the buying
platforms they use today (i.e. omnichannel DSPs)
Key contributors to native advertising’s long-term sustainability include:
16. The OpenRTB spec provides standards for communication between ad buyers & sellers
Source: Nexage, DataXu, IAB, Thomvest Research16
- The OpenRTB protocol
provides open standards
for the communication
between buyers and sellers
of ad inventory
- Standards including the
bidding protocol,
information taxonomies,
synchronization, and
regulation
- The IAB governs the
OpenRTB specs and
organizes updates with the
help of contributing ad tech
companies
Standardizing RTB
Ad Buying
The OpenRTB Ecosystem
Data Management
Platform
Data Broker
Ad Network
Working for a buyer
Advertiser
Ad Server
Ad Network
Working for a
publisher
Publisher
Ad Server
Agency
Trading Desk
or In-House
Team
PublisherDSP
OpenRTB Client
SSP
OpenRTB Server
Sell-SideBuy-Side
Open
Standards1
17. The OpenRTB 2.3 spec set the groundwork for programmatic native
17
Overview
- Support for native ad units was introduced in the OpenRTB 2.3 spec
- The Native 1.0 spec defined what goes in the native object introduced in OpenRTB 2.3
- Rather than image references for banners and video references for pre-roll, the native
object includes the actual metadata for the ad, including: Headline, Description,
Thumbnail & Brand Name
Key Benefits
- A single framework: The Native 1.0 spec created a generic framework by which a
supply source (SSP/exchange) can request the specific items needed as part of the ad.
- Native ad assets: A demand source (DSP/bidder) is then required to respond with
assets that match the specifications of the supply source so that the native ad unit can
be assembled.
Concerns
- More specifications needed: Native 1.0 does not specify what assets should look
like, meaning each supply source is free to define their own standards for image,
aspect ratio, headline length, brand name length, etc.
- Unclear definitions: When applied to the native 1.0 spec, the classifications of the
original playbook created confusion on the DSP side in terms of classifying inventory
due to the unclear context and layout concepts and some overlapping definitions.
- Limited scalability: Due to the lack of standard classifications, inventory is often still
being purchased by named supply source, hampering scalability.
March 2015: OpenRTB 2.3 & Native 1.0
-
“The RTB 2.3 enables
huge swaths of native
inventory to be biddable
and programmatically
enabled.”
Steve Katelman,
EVP of Global Strategic Partnerships
Open
Standards1
18. OpenRTB technology automatically assembles each component into a native ad
18
Components of a native ad unit
Image
Thumbnail
Description
Brand Name
Rating
Call to Action
Open
Standards1
19. The OpenRTB 2.4 spec will further enable scalability within the native ecosystem
19
Overview
- The Native 1.1 spec was released by the IAB for public comment in early 2016
- The spec introduces new classifications of native inventory, including:
- Context: What type of content surrounds the ad unit? There are three primary
classifications: content feeds, social feeds and product feeds. Each primary
classification has sub-classifications.
- Placement Type: What is the design of the ad unit being purchased? This list aligns
similarly to the original playbook but in a streamlined fashion: in-feed, on an article
page, outside of core content, or recommendation widget.
Key Benefits
- Classifications: These new classifications should enable native to scale more broadly
as DSPs can represent inventory by context and placement type, rather than needing
to separately represent each supply source.
- Scalability: Through better asset standardization and classification, advertisers will
have more confidence to scale buys across multiple sources while maintaining control
over what they buy.
Concerns
- Conforming to new standards: Given the free range of early native standards, many
native platforms will need to dedicate resources to adapting to the new standards
established in the Native 1.1 spec.
-
“The Native 1.1 extension
both addresses asset
standardization and
classifies the context and
layout of where the native
ad will placed, which allows
for greater confidence of
a buyer to scale buys
across multiple sources
while maintaining control
over what they buy.”
Curt Larson,
VP of Product Management
January 2016: OpenRTB 2.4 & Native 1.1
Open
Standards1
20. OpenRTB 2.4 will provide clarification around how native ad units should be assembled
20
How Images Are Handled In OpenRTB 2.4How Text Elements Are Handled In OpenRTB 2.4
Source: Sharethrough
Open
Standards1
21. The IAB has identified six main ad formats that are categorized as native
21
The formats were introduced in the “IAB Native Advertising Playbook”, which serves as a consistent framework for the discussion
surrounding native advertising
- In-feed ads have numerous variations in
their execution – from story forms where
the content is written by or in partnership
with the publisher, to promotional ads
which links off of the site to branded
content.
- The primary metric is brand awareness.
1. In-Feed Units
- Search ads can be found above organic
search results. They look exactly like the
surrounding results and has been sold
with a guaranteed placement so the
advertiser knows exactly what context
surrounds it.
- Its primary conversion metric is direct
response, such as purchase.
2. Paid Search Units
- Recommendation widgets are a form of
native advertising where an ad or paid
content link is delivered via a 'widget'.
- These units typically do not mimic the
appearance of the editorial content feed,
links off of the site, and are measured on
brand engagement.
3. Recommendation Widgets
Native Ad
Formats2
22. 22
- In-Ad (IAB Standard) is an ad in a
standard IAB container that contains
contextually relevant content within the
ad, links to an offsite page, and has been
sold with a guaranteed placement.
- This ad format is measured on brand
metrics (interaction, brand lift).
4. In-Ad with Native Elements
- Promoted listings are designed to fit
seamlessly into the browsing experience,
are presented to look identical to the
products/services offered on a given site,
& are typically bought directly via the
publisher.
- This ad format is measured on direct
response metrics.
5. Promoted Listings
- Custom/can’t be contained can take
many forms, but in all instances are
custom to a specific site.
- Examples include platform-specific ads
(i.e. Promoted Tweets or Sponsored
Stories) or custom playlists.
6. Custom / “Can’t Be Contained”
The formats were introduced in the “IAB Native Advertising Playbook”, which serves as a consistent framework for the discussion
surrounding native advertising
The IAB has identified six main ad formats that are categorized as nativeNative Ad
Formats2
23. The IAB also defined six core criteria for evaluating native advertising units
23
The framework is designed to be used by marketers when considering native advertising options, in order to ensure that a unit will
meet the brand’s objectives
1 Form
2 Function
3 Integration
4 Targeting
5 Measurement
6 Disclosure
How does the ad fit with the overall page design? Is it
in the viewer’s activity stream or not in-stream?
Does the ad deliver the same type of experience, e.g.,
a video on a video page or story among stories, or is
it different?
How well do the ad unit’s behaviors match those of
the surrounding content?
Is the ad placement guaranteed on a specific page,
section, or site, or will it be delivered across a network
of sites? What type of targeting is available?
What metrics are typically used to judge success?
Top of funnel (views, shares, etc.) or bottom (sale,
download, etc.)?
Is the disclosure clear and prominent?
In-Stream Out of Stream
Brand Engagement
Matches Function
Mirrors Page Content Behavior
Narrowly Targeting Placement
Direct Response
Doesn’t Match Function
Introduces New Behaviors
Broadly Targeted Placement
Native Ad
Formats2
24. Many vendors have adopted new ad serving techniques, known as “server-side stitching”
24
Standard Ad ServingModern Native Ad Serving
AD
CMS
Content
Ad
Server
Ad
A 3rd party call is made
to the publisher’s ad
server in order to fetch
an ad
Site content is loaded
AD
Content & Ad
The ad server is integrated into the
CMS, which renders the ad content in
the same way it does editorial content
Ad
Server
CMS
Ad
- Bypasses ad blockers, which are growing in popularity across
both desktop & mobile
- Faster ad load times compared to traditional ad serving methods
- More seamless user experience
Key Benefits
Native Ad
Formats2
Server-side sticking improves performance and renders native ads in a format that mimics the look and feel of publisher sites
25. Multichannel demand-side platforms have been slow to integrate native supply
25
In order to bring more brand dollars into the native ecosystem, native adtech vendors must integrate into existing buying platforms,
which are typically multichannel DSPs
Buying
Platforms3
Brand programmatic
media budgets
Spend across display,
mobile, social, video, etc.
- Native integrations require more development time than
typical display integrations, which impacts their priority
among DSPs
- Adoption of OpenRTB 2.3 standards was slower than
expected (due in part to limitations described in prior slides)
- Limited interest from brand advertisers relative to other
digital advertising formats (especially video)
- There is a lack of scale of on the supply side relative to
other formats
- The assets required to assemble native ads are often
unique to the format; brands and agencies have yet to
adapt
Primary Limitations to DSP Adoption
Much of a brand’s programmatic
media spend flows through
multichannel DSPs
26. However, some DSPs have signaled a willingness to ramp up native integrations in 2016
26
We expect the large DSPs to accelerate integrations into the native ecosystem; brand spend into native will follow
-
“Native is one of our top
priorities, particularly as
dynamic creative takes off,
and we are investing
heavily in growing the
capability”
Eric Picard,
VP of Omnichannel Media
-
Once buyers can plan and test native
ads alongside banner ads through the
big digital exchanges, “native will be a
part of every campaign. […] The future
DSP has video, native, mobile,
cinemagraphs, and the DSP will
decision accordingly”
Ari Lewine,
Co-Founder
-
"Programmatic advertising
is about delivering an
organic, personal ad
experience, and native is a
natural outgrowth of that
capability”
Tim Sims,
VP of Inventory Partnerships
Buying
Platforms3
28. The programmatic native ad stack
28
Demand Side Platforms
Agency Trading Desks
Advertisers
Ad Networks Ad Exchanges
Supply Side Platforms
Publishers
Buy Side
Sell Side
Many early pure-play native vendors built out full-stack solutions in order to jump-start the native marketplace — we may begin to see
some specialization as larger buy-side vendors embrace native
Omnichannel DSPs (DataXu,
MediaMath, Turn, etc.) were slow to
embrace native, but have begun more
actively integrating with native vendors
Most pure-play native vendors have
focused on integrating with publishers
and developing supply-side capabilities
29. Competitive positioning of pure-play native advertising vendors
29
Low CPMs High CPMs
SupplyfocusedDemandfocused
There are few buy-side vendors focused on top-of-funnel brand advertising; we expect the omnichannel DSPs to play a role in
bringing large brands into programmatic native
30. Competitive positioning of pure-play native advertising vendors
30
Low CPMs High CPMs
SupplyfocusedDemandfocused
Vendors focused on buy-side
Long-tail native supply platforms
Building out both sides of native marketplace
SSPs focused on premium publishers
Premium native marketplaces
There are few buy-side vendors focused on top-of-funnel brand advertising; we expect the omnichannel DSPs to play a role in
bringing large brands into programmatic native
31. All of the “big four” have a native ad offering, both on their properties and across 3rd party sites
31
Native inventory on
owned properties
(first-party)
Native inventory
across partner sites
(third-party)
- Google’s primary revenue
stream is its sponsored search
results, which are considered a
form of native advertising
- Yahoo! rolled out native
inventory across its properties
in 2013
- The company reported that
mobile native ads see a 2.6X
higher CTR than other Yahoo
mobile display ads
- Most of the company’s ad units
are in the native format,
including its News Feed ads
- 80% of Facebook’s advertising
revenue comes from mobile;
the company reported $4.5B in
mobile ad revenue in Q4 2015
- Twitter’s primary ad format is its
native in-stream ad, known as
a Promoted Tweet
- 86% of the company’s ad
revenue comes from mobile,
which represented $641M in
ad revenue in Q4 2015
- The company also offers native
inventory across 3rd party
mobile apps via its Gemini
Exchange
- In Q4 2015, Yahoo! reported
350 billion native ad requests
for third-party mobile app
inventory on Gemini,
accounting for more than 50%
of total Gemini impressions
- Additionally, the company
offers native ads on 3rd party
apps through its Audience
Network; the network reached
a $1B run rate in Q4 2015
- 83% of impressions on the
Audience Network are in the
native format
- Through its acquisition of
MoPub, the company also
offers native inventory across
3rd party apps
- In June 2015, MoPub reported
that native ad inventory across
its 3rd party apps had
increased by 8x from the
previous year
- In late 2015, Google
announced that it was
exposing native ads in mobile
apps to buyers on its exchange
- Primary buyers of native
inventory on the exchange
today are performance focused
(i.e. driving app installs)
- In 2016, Google is expected to
expose additional native ad
formats on its exchange,
including desktop and mobile
web, which may bring more
brand dollars to the format
32. 32
Facebook is making a strong push into native on third-party apps with its Audience Network
-
“Facebook's Audience
Network has been an
incredible force in driving ad
revenue for LOVOO. With
native ads that fit well with the
look and feel of our app and
accurate people-based
targeting, we've seen CPMs
up to 120% higher than other
ad networks. Over half of our
ad revenue can be attributed
to the Audience Network.”
Eric Jangor,
Head of Corporate Affairs & BD
- In March 2016, Facebook announced integration of
FAN with common mediation platforms like Fyber,
Mopub & Opera
Scale
Focus
Recent
Developments
- Facebook bills its Audience Network (FAN) as the
largest native ad network on mobile; in Q4 2015,
Facebook announced that FAN had reached a $1
billion annual run rate
- Although multiple ad units are available, Facebook
has reported that 83% of ad units on FAN are in
the native format
- FAN is currently mobile app focused, but the
company is expected to launch on mobile web in
2016 (FAN for mobile web is currently in beta)
- Advertisers can buy inventory across the Audience
Network using the same tools and workflow as they
would on Facebook properties; most advertisers are
performance-focused, including app developers
focused on driving installs
33. The challenge for native ad startups will be competing with Facebook on third-party sites
33 Source: IHS
Facebook’s Audience Network, along with similar offerings from other large competitors, may make it difficult for independent native
advertising companies to compete for access to publishers inventory
Forecasted Mobile App Advertising Spend in 2018 (Global)
AdvertisingSpend(inBillions)
$25B
$50B
$75B
$1.6B
$4.7B
$28.9B
$33.6B
$62.9B
Total Mobile
Display Ad Spend
Mobile Native
Ad Spend
More than half of
mobile spend will be in
the native format
First-Party
Native
Ad Spend
Third-Party
Native
Ad Spend
Most of the spend will
be on platforms like
Facebook & Twitter
The remaining native
ad spend will be on
publisher sites that are
monetized by third
parties, like FAN
We project about
$1.6B available to
independent native ad
vendors
Ad Spend Funneled
Through Independent
Native Ad Vendors
34. The four largest mobile advertising companies together account for nearly 60% of total revenue
34
25%
50%
75%
100%
2014 2015 2016 2017
33%34%32%
27%
2%3%3%
3%
4%4%4%
4%
20%19%19%
19%
32%32%33%36%
Google
Facebook
Twitter
Yahoo!
Apple (iAd)
Pandora
YP
Yelp
LinkedIn
Amazon
Millenial Media
Other
U.S. Mobile Ad Revenue Share, by Company
GOOG & FB
account for >50% of
mobile ad revenue
Source: eMarketer, September 2015
Much of this advertising revenue comes from these companies’ native ad formats
36. TripleLift
36
Company Profile
‣ Founded: 2012
‣ Headquarters: New York, NY
‣ Employees: 100
‣ Total Funding: $16.5M
‣ Latest Financing: $10.5M Series B, July 2015
Company Updates
‣ January 2016 — Joins Integral Ad Science
Certified Viewability Partner Program
‣ November 2015 — Announces expansion into
EMEA and office opening in London
‣ December 2014 — Announces deal with The
Atlantic to power publisher’s native ad offerings
‣ July 2014 — Announces partnership with
BazaarVoice to power native advertising on e-
commerce sites
Positioning
Key Features
TripleLift is the only native programmatic platform with true RTB capabilities for buying and
selling native advertising, seamlessly transforming visual content into native ads.
Image-Optimizing Technology
Computer vision allows for
automated reassembly of ad content
(image, text, video) to adapt to look
and feel across multiple publishers
RTB-Enabled Ad Exchange
Allows advertisers buying media
programmatically to leverage their
existing buying platforms to access
premium, in-feed native ads.
Full-Stack Native Offering
Offers capabilities for both
advertisers and publishers, as well
as integrations with major demand-
side platforms
Notable Customers
- 1,500+ publishers, including:
- Conde Nast
- The Atlantic
- Hearst Newspapers
Target Customer Groups
- Large web publishers
- F2000 consumer advertisers
37. Nativo
37
Company Profile
‣ Founded: 2010
‣ Headquarters: Long Beach, CA
‣ Employees: 31
‣ Total Funding: $32M
‣ Latest Financing: $20M Series B, June 2015
Company Updates
‣ November 2015 — Announces additional native
ad formats, including native video, slideshow &
collections
‣ August 2015 — Announces partnership with IDG
Communications, Native@Scale
‣ April 2015 — Adds optimization technology to
ad platform, including real-time A/B testing
‣ June 2013 — VivaKi, Publicis Groupe's ad tech
solutions agency, announces a strategic
partnership with Nativo
Positioning
Key Features
Nativo operates a branded content network that serves ads within publisher editorial streams,
matched to the look and feel of each publication.
Premium Native Marketplace
Nativo focuses on top-of-funnel
brand campaigns on premium sites
Advertiser Landing Pages
Unique landing pages on publisher
sites for advertising content that
resembles native editorial content
Ad Optimization Capabilities
The company applies A/B testing,
geotargeting, frequency capping and
other features to further optimize the
content across screens
Notable Customers
- 400+ publishers, including:
- Entrepreneur
- Maxim
- Reader's Digest
- Kiplinger
Target Customer Groups
- Large web publishers
- F2000 consumer advertisers
38. Sharethrough
38
Company Profile
‣ Founded: 2008
‣ Headquarters: San Francisco, CA
‣ Employees: 172
‣ Total Funding: $38M
‣ Latest Financing: $10M Series D, Sep. 2014
Company Updates
‣ March 2016 — Trade Desks announces
integration with Sharethrough SSP
‣ October 2015 — Announces native video ads
that silent autoplay on publisher sites
‣ May 2015 — Sharethrough and Nudge Analytics
announce partnership to measure audience
attention on sponsored content
‣ February 2015 — Announces $80M+ annual run
rate
Positioning
Key Features
All-in-one native advertising software for publishers, app developers and advertisers.
Sharethrough for Publishers
Supply-side platform that allows
publishers to manage and execute
full-stack native advertising
campaigns
Sharethrough Ad Manager
Advertisers can turn any brand
content into unique native ad
experiences. Includes content
optimization suite and reporting
dashboard
Sharethrough Exchange
Native advertising exchange with
over 3 billion monthly impressions
across 270 million global uniques
Notable Customers
- Real Simple
- Forbes
- USA Today Sports
- People Magazine
- Time, Inc.
Target Customer Groups
- Large web publishers
- F2000 consumer advertisers (46 of the top 50
AdAge Megabrands use SAM)
39. AdsNative
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Company Profile
‣ Founded: 2012
‣ Headquarters: San Francisco, CA
‣ Employees: 28
‣ Total Funding: $10.5M
‣ Latest Financing: $8.5M Series A, Sep. 2015
Company Updates
‣ September 2015 — Launches enterprise native
ad-server with ‘server-side stitching’ capabilities
‣ May 2015 — AdsNative named “2015 TiE50 Top
Start-UP”
‣ April 2015 — Partners with Zemanta to expand
programmatic native advertising exchange
‣ November 2014 — Launches native advertising
mediation platform
Positioning
Key Features
End-to-end native ads management solution for publishers. Manage all of direct and indirect
revenue with one integration.
AdsNative Enterprise
A platform that integrates an open
and flexible ad serving technology
within the framework of a publisher’s
existing CMS
Demand Manager
Supply-side platform for native that
includes yield optimization & tag
management capabilities
Marketplace
Native advertising exchange that
runs across AdsNative’s network of
1000+ publishers
Notable Customers
- 100s of publishers, including:
- Reuters
- Disqus
- Cracked.com
- Politico
Target Customer Groups
- Large web publishers
- Mobile app developers with feed-based content
40. In-app advertising represents more than three-fourths of total ad spend on mobile
40
$10
$20
$30
$40
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
$7.8
$7.4
$6.4
$5.1
$3.9
$2.8
$1.7
$1.0
$27.1
$23.8
$20.1
$16.0
$12.1
$8.5
$4.7
$2.1
Mobile in-app ad spend Mobile web ad spend
Mobile Ad Spend by Type (In-App vs. Mobile Web) — North America
Source: IHS
AdSpend(BillionsUSD)
-
By 2020, 78% of
mobile ad spend in
North America will
be in-app
41. The majority of in-app advertising will be in the native format
41
$10
$20
$30
$40
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
$3.4
$2.8
$2.3
$1.8
$1.2
$1.0
$0.7
$0.6
$23.8
$21.0
$17.8
$14.2
$10.9
$7.5
$4.0
$1.5
In-app native ad spend In-app display ad spend
In-App Ad Spend by Format (Native vs. Display) — North America
Source: IHS
AdSpend(BillionsUSD)
-
By 2020, 88% of
in-app advertising in
North America will
be native
42. In-app native will primarily be driven by direct (first-party) ad spend
42
$10
$20
$30
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020
$3.9
$2.9
$2.2
$1.5
$0.9
$0.4
$0.1
$19.8
$18.1
$15.6
$12.7
$10.0
$7.1
$3.9
In-app first-party native ad spend In-app third-party native ad spend
Source: IHS
First party native advertising is
advertising that is operated and
served within the company’s
proprietary app (e.g. a Facebook
news feed ad or a promoted
Tweet).
Third party native advertising is
operated and served by a third
party onto a publisher’s or app
developer’s inventory (e.g. an in-
stream NY Times ad served by a
native ad vendor).
In-App Native Ad Spend by Type (First-Party vs. Third Party) — North America
AdSpend(BillionsUSD)
43. Users have yet to acclimate to the native format, often mistaking it for publisher content
43
- When asked if they recalled seeing the brand’s content on the
publisher page, a majority of consumers said they noticed the
brand’s content
Q: Did you notice the recipe content for Sargento?
Q: Did you know that the recipe content for Sargento
was a paid advertisement?
- However, despite clear disclosure language in the ad unit, more
than half of those that noticed the brand content did not
recognize that the content as a paid advertisement
No
29%
Yes
71%
No
62%
Yes
38%
A recent study of native ad campaigns highlighted both its performance and consumer confusion around ads versus content
Source: TripleLift, “The State of Native Advertising Disclosure"
44. Thank you!
For questions or comments, please contact:
Don Butler
don@thomvest.com
Nima Wedlake
nima@thomvest.com
Mark Prior
mark@thomvest.com Thomvest Ventures
203 Redwood Shores Parkway, Suite 680
Redwood City, CA 94065
thomvest.com
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