Smaato report finds post-GDPR spike in CPMs for non-targeted mobile ads

Spending for targeted ads to users who have granted consent are also spiking, but the expectation is that rates will stabilize as the audience of consenting users grows.

Barry Levine on September 12, 2018 at 6:47 pm

Whatever the long-term effects of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), the short-term effects include a boost in effective CPMs for non-targeted mobile ad inventory.

That’s a key finding in a recent report from mobile ad platform Smaato, “Global Trends in Mobile Advertising,” based on trillions of ad requests through its platform. In the Americas, for instance, prices for non-targeted ad impressions increased 59 percent in the period from April 1 to June 30, which includes the May 25 implementation launch for GDPR.

Why would rates for inventory of publishers in the Americas — mostly premium US publishers — increase because of GDPR? In their immediate response to the new regulation, US publishers pulled back inventory targeted at users’ data, especially for users with European IP addresses or with unknown origination. GDPR applies to any European Union visitors, regardless of where the publisher is.

[Read the full article on MarTech Today.]

About The Author

Barry Levine

Barry Levine covers marketing technology for Third Door Media. Previously, he covered this space as a Senior Writer for VentureBeat, and he has written about these and other tech subjects for such publications as CMSWire and NewsFactor. He founded and led the web site/unit at PBS station Thirteen/WNET; worked as an online Senior Producer/writer for Viacom; created a successful interactive game, PLAY IT BY EAR: The First CD Game; founded and led an independent film showcase, CENTER SCREEN, based at Harvard and M.I.T.; and served over five years as a consultant to the M.I.T. Media Lab. You can find him at LinkedIn, and on Twitter at xBarryLevine.