OpenWeb's Plan to Stop Misinformation From Its Publishers

The commenting software OpenWeb announced Monday that it is removing a total of 50 domains from its network, citing their failure to meet its publishing standards. The company declined to name the specific sites it's removing, but they fall broadly into the categories of clickbait, celebrity entertainment, politics and medicine, according to co-founder and CEO Nadav Shoval. OpenWeb will terminate its contracts with the domains by Aug. 31, a decision that represents $500,000 in lost revenue, according to the company. OpenWeb, which works with publishers like Salon and PCMag, initially announced in July plans to remove 13 publishers. After partnering with the Global Disinformation Index to conduct an external audit of its domain partners, OpenWeb said it would remove an additional 37 publishers, bringing the total of ousted domains to 50. OpenWeb works with approximately 1,200 total domains, according to senior marketing director Mitch Hansen. “We are a mission-driven company, and in order for us to be really loyal to our mission, we want to make sure we also work with and empower the right publishers,” Shoval told Adweek. “We always have room to improve, but we’re very proud of the extra actions we take.” How Salon and PCMag Are Moderating and Monetizing Their Comment Sections The OpenWeb model OpenWeb works with publishers to power their in-article commenting sections. The company promises publishers that, through its use of a proprietary algorithm and other technology, it can automatically moderate comment sections to remove their toxic elements. In the process, the company captures first-party data from users who sign up to leave comments, which it provides to the publisher. In exchange, OpenWeb runs advertisements alongside the comment section and takes a percentage cut of the revenue the ads generate. In April, OpenWeb announced it was on pace to generate more than $100 million in revenue on the year. It has more than 100 employees split between its New York and Tel Aviv offices. The challenges of curbing toxicity OpenWeb rebranded from Spot.IM in June 2020 and cast itself as a brand-safe environment where advertisers could market to a highly engaged audience of commenting readers. However, an investigation by the ad-tech newsletter Branded found that the company worked with a number of brand-unsafe partners, as well as dark pool sales houses, which act as intermediaries to publishers that OpenWeb has no control over. The analysis, published in partnership with Gizmodo, was a factor in spurring OpenWeb to conduct an audit of its domain partners. The core value proposition of OpenWeb is that it provides marketers a brand-safe environment, but its removal of 50 domains signals that the company has struggled to fulfill that promise. Instead, it worked with outlets like Revolver News, The Post Millennial and Canada Free Press, all purveyors of misinformation. "They're counting their updates as improvements to their existing product, rather than admit that their product's central marketing claim is an abject failure," said Nandini Jammi, a co-founder of Branded. “They have one job––to ensure brand-safe inventory for their advertisers––and if they're not doing that, I don't understand what value they're providing.” The brands that advertised on these now-ousted domains are aware that their inventory was carried by these publishers. They will not be receiving refunds because OpenWeb has been transparent about the domains it works with, Shoval said. “Our mission is to improve the quality of conversations, which comes as a combination of incentivizing the good and reducing the bad,” Shoval said. “Our mission is not just brand safety; brand safety is the byproduct of creating better conversations.” OpenWeb will continue to work with GDI going forward, both when vetting new applicants into its publisher network and for routine self-audits.

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To Reduce Misinformation, OpenWeb Removes 50 Publishers From Its Network

The company partnered with the Global Disinformation Index to review its domain partners

Mark Stenberg

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