For more than 17 years, in the role as the founder of Ad Insertion Platform (AIP), I've been deeply involved in the ad insertion business.
We began our journey with multicast TV ad insertion in 2007 and expanded in 2017 to include Server-Side Ad insertion. Additionally, we developed an Ad Proxy solution to facilitate Client-Side ad insertion.
Three years ago, we introduced ad sales services for CTV and OTT platforms to not only provide technical solutions but also ad revenues to our customers. This expansion enabled us to gain comprehensive insight into the entire process, from stream or content transcoding to advertising marketplace sales and SSP/DSP integration.
Our extensive journey has given us a unique position, offering significant advantages to our customers. We now have a comprehensive understanding of global needs, not only from a technical standpoint but also from an ad sales perspective. Our technology is designed and developed to fulfil a specific purpose, in this case, enabling free or lower-cost access to content by financing it through advertisements.
To give you a better understanding of Ad Insertion Platform's strategy, we have created a series of articles. In the next weeks and before NAB 2024 where we will exhibit with our long time partner Zixi on their Zixi Partner Village (Booth W14.01), we will publish our trilogy called "Pioneering the Future of Advertising" with the following subjects:
- A Deep Dive into the Benefits and Drawbacks of Client-Side Ad Insertion
- Weighing the Scale: Unpacking the Pros and Cons of Server-Side Ad Insertion
- The new era of Dynamic Ad Insertion Unveiled
Let's start with Part 1 of the AIP Trilogy:
A Deep Dive into the Benefits and Drawbacks of Client-Side Ad Insertion
Technically there are currently two options for monetizing video content and live channels or events. The first option, known as Client-Side Ad Insertion, is the historical way to play advertisements since the beginning of digital advertising. A newer option emerged on the market from 2015 to 2017, known as Server-Side Ad Insertion. With Server-Side Ad Insertion, ads are inserted directly into the stream (manifest) for each user, whereas with Client-Side Ad Insertion, ads (and subsequent ad server calls) originate from the video player before switching to the content itself.
In Part 1 of the AIP Trilogy, we will walk you through the oldest option on the market.
As you can see in the diagram above, with Client-Side ad insertion (CSAI), the video player (client) is making direct calls to the Ad server, typically through a VAST or VMAP request, to fetch the advertisements. Ensuring VAST compliance is crucial for the video player to effectively handle the ad server's response, extract the creative (ad) content, and trigger all associated ad trackers accurately and timely.
Following this, the video player proceeds to play the retrieved ad(s) and then returns to or starts the content playing by making a subsequent call to the content source URL, usually to the CDN (Content Delivery Network), to retrieve the manifest of the stream to play, whether it's live or Video On Demand (VOD) content.
What are the benefits of the CSAI solution for the customer:
- Most interactive ad features are supported, including ad skipping and some level of interactivity, along with click-through features (subject to your player's capabilities). It's very common to see ads that allow skipping after, for instance, 5 seconds after the start of the ad, providing customers flexibility in managing their advertising strategy and desired ad frequency.
- Client ad metrics feedback, as it is the video player that sends the trackers and all relevant information. This means that any ad metrics from the client can be returned, while ensuring compliance with applicable privacy regulations.
- “Real-time” ad call and play, as the calls to the ad servers are done at specific intervals. The most common are ads placed before the content starts (pre-roll), ads placed at the end of the content (post-roll), and potentially during the content (mid-roll) if required.
- Enhanced ad playback options and greater flexibility with creative ad placements such as Side-by-side ads, L-Shape ads, and banners. As ad calls are managed by the client, customization of layouts is possible, although it may require custom development and adaptations due to the lack of standardization for such formats or layouts.
- Allows long manifest (and replay), as the customer can decide the length of the manifest for a live channel. Both the content and the manifest are cached on the CDN, ensuring efficient delivery from its origin.
- Allows Ultra Low latency: if your video player is supporting Ultra low-latency and VAST, there is no issue here, the content can be played in Ultra low-latency, and the ads that will be played will be in a standard MP4 container for example.
- High content delivery reliability. All the content delivery is done using the CDN, allowing you to deliver the video chunks (the content itself) and the manifest at the closest location.
What are the drawbacks of Client-Side ad insertion ?
- Not an optimal user experience during ad playback. Grabbing the ad creative from its main location, passing through multiple wrappers to finally get the ad creative is possibly creating significant latencies and buffering. Making your viewer wait on a buffering logo to watch an ad that he is potentially not expecting, when the access after the ad break is fast and direct, it is perhaps not the best option to convince him that the platform is convenient to use and fully functional.
- Lack of control over the ad format. Ad servers return ad creatives without any control over their quality or the format you're expecting (I will not open the topic concerning VPAID, but those who are familiar with that “format”, will understand).
- Device compatibility issues. Not all devices or video players are able to play the same ad creative format. Yes, MP4 format is now taking over for video, but there is still no guarantee that the video player will be able to play the advertising.
- Need more video player resources. Video players typically handle advertising and content separately; one video player plays the content and another one the advertising, necessitating additional resources.
- Lack of streamlined process for mid-roll ad synchronization. Without a reliable link between content and the exact position where to start to play the advertising, syncing mid-roll ads becomes challenging. Although some video players attempt to detect markers for accuracy on mid-rolls, a seamless process remains elusive, impacting ad placement effectiveness.
- Vulnerability to ad blockers. As the calls to ad servers originate from the video player, they are susceptible to analysis and filtering by ad blockers. This can result in the blocking of these calls or the ad trackers necessary for revenue generation (as these ad trackers are used as “proof of play”), undermining ad delivery and monetization efforts.
Stay tuned for Part 2 of the AIP Trilogy: Pioneering the Future of Advertising: where we will unpack the Pros and Cons of Server-Side Ad Insertion!
