How Google's Upcoming AdX Changes Could Affect Media Buys

Auction overhaul prompts a sigh from buyers as possibility of another tech tax looms

Last week, Google announced it would move to block certain contextual information from its programmatic trading platforms. The move effectively amounts to a tech tax hike, but some hope it will lead to more household brands sponsoring news content.

The latest in the search giant’s ongoing privacy overhaul was prompted by regulators. Beginning in February 2020, advertisers won’t be able to see some of the content classification terms their ads may appear next to.

Despite the resulting increased risk for brand safety snafus on the Google ad exchange and higher costs, media buyers are treating the change as more of a thorn in the paw rather than a hole in the head.

Publishers, meanwhile, hold out hope for a potential welcome boost to their news coverage, which meets the threshold for brand safety but nonetheless is often blacklisted by marketers.

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