Introducing the Adweek Podcast Network. Access infinite inspiration in your pocket on everything from career advice and creativity to metaverse marketing and more. Browse all podcasts.
TikTok said Monday that it received Gold Standard 2.0 certification from IAB UK, marking the first time it has been certified by the industry body for digital advertising.
The goal of Gold Standard 2.0 is to enhance transparency and address privacy concerns by reviewing data protocols against a standardized process, and companies must meet several criteria in order to achieve certification, including implementation of IAB Tech Lab’s app-ads.txt and providing documentation and insight to demonstrate their compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation and ePrivacy Directive.
TikTok shared steps it has taken to achieve certification:
- The video creation platform adopted app-ads.txt in order to reduce fraud.
- It received Brand Safety Certification from the Trustworthy Accountability Group.
- TikTok promoted the Coalition of Better Ads’ Better Ads Standards for mobile web to support a positive user experience.
- The company enables users to manage their advertising preference in support of the ePrivacy Directive and GDPR.
- Employees completed IAB Gold Standard training.
- TikTok created educational program TikTok Academy to help brands and media agencies learn about the solutions, tools and creative best practices available to them.
TikTok Europe head of global business solutions Stuart Flint said in a statement, “As a platform with such a strong focus on user-generated content, we take our responsibility very seriously to ensure an in-application environment where people feel free to express themselves. For that, they must feel safe, which, in turn, creates a safe environment for brands. That’s why we’re continuing to invest in new measures and work with respected industry partners to build out our suite of viewability and safety solutions for advertisers. We look forward to building on Gold Standard 2.0 and working with IAB UK to promote transparency, privacy and safety across the digital advertising industry.”
IAB UK ad tech manager Nickesh Patel added, “Congratulations to TikTok on becoming Gold Standard 2.0-certified. We’re delighted to have their support as we work to create a more sustainable future for digital advertising. We have evolved the Gold Standard to ensure that it remains relevant, robust and effective at addressing current industry challenges—yet its success relies on our members’ willingness to embrace the initiative and get involved. By working together as an industry, we can achieve a lot more than we can alone—upholding shared values and helping to improve the digital ecosystem for all parties, not least the end user.”
