BY TONY KATSUR //
Not all new publisher technology trends cause the entire industry to take notice, but the introduction of header bidding, late in 2015, was important enough to get everyone’s attention. Header bidding allows a buyer to see every available impression immediately before it is served, providing a true first look at inventory, and thus delivering unprecedented control over what is being bought. Buyers saw the value almost immediately, and began to adopt it through their trading desks, using it on a remnant basis (RTB), spot basis (PMP) or Upfront basis (programmatic guaranteed or direct audience).
The advent of header-based technology represents a seismic shift in the direct media procurement process, and thus is important for the entire community of advertisers and buyers, impacting far more than just the programmatic teams. Gone are the days of publishers pre-packaging inventory for activation; welcome to the days of advertisers selecting the media and audience that will deliver on their brand’s objectives. The shift is from push to pull.