Press release: Advertising leader Verve’s latest acquisition, valued $185 million (approx. €170 million), also bolsters digital audio solutions, engaging ad formats, and AI optimization.

The Verve Brand+ Marketplace unlocked new levels of Connected TV inventory for Smadex, enabling them to reach engaged mobile gamers on the big screen.

In the digital realm, data is money. Users can pay for digital goods and services with their personal data — be it simple things like name and email address, or more intimate information like health data. And looking at the numbers, it’s clear that today’s users are highly motivated to trade their data for free content. About 97% of mobile apps are free, and the majority of those free apps rely on in-app advertising to pay the bills. We surveyed 4,000 mobile users to find out how they felt about this value exchange — the results of which can be found in our In-app User Privacy Report. In this post, we’ll dive into one portion of those findings: Which users are the most willing to watch ads for free content? And which content motivates users to share their data? Increased willingness to share data and watch ads Today’s users are more knowledgeable than ever about the data-sharing process. Privacy laws have opened consumers’ eyes to their digital rights. Opt-ins have become more prevalent and transparent. And users are increasingly exercising the right to access their data. As a result, mobile users’ opinions on data sharing have evolved. According to our survey, 58% of respondents are more willing to share their data on apps than they were two years ago. (More on that later!) And with an improved feeling of control over their data and insight into how ads help fund app content, users are also more willing to receive ads for free content. 67% of those surveyed agreed that they are more inclined to watch in-app ads in return for free content than they were two years ago — and between those that agreed and disagreed with this statement, there were notable demographic differences. Takeaway for advertisers Consumers are particularly accepting of in-app advertising, as they are aware of the value exchange that is taking place. This makes mobile apps an ideal environment for your ads to be positively received. Takeaway for publishers Transparency leads to trust. Ensure consent requests list the exact purposes for specific kinds of data collection and benefits consumers will receive. In return, users will feel more comfortable opting in. Who’s watching ads for free content? Our survey included users from the UK and the US, and although the majority of respondents in both countries agreed that they are more willing to watch in-app ads in exchange for free content than two years ago, those in the UK seemed to have a higher level of skepticism towards in-app advertising. Overall, there was a 13% gap in willingness to view ads for free content between these two countries. Looking at respondents’ age data, it is clear that younger generations have a better understanding and acceptance of the in-app advertising value exchange.  Over 80% of those under 34 years are more willing to watch ads in exchange for free content than two years ago. However, this willingness sees a dropoff with older generations. Takeaway for advertisers Millennials will soon wield the most purchasing power of any generation — and Gen Z’s collective spending, especially in the digital realm, is growing rapidly. The high willingness of these age groups to watch ads makes in-app advertising an effective way to reach the younger generations. Takeaway for publishers To ensure a pleasant UX for users that may be more resistant to in-app ads, activate solutions that can assess anonymized on-device activity and group audiences into interest-based cohorts. This will allow for precise targeting, without personal data, that delivers contextually-relevant ads. Where are users most likely to share their data? All apps are not created equal when it comes to users’ data preferences. Shopping and social media top the list of share-worthy apps. This isn’t surprising, since the respondents to our survey also indicated an appreciation for contextually-relevant advertising and likely welcome a product or service recommendation within these types of apps. The increasingly popular category of gaming also ranked quite highly, likely due to its association with in-app perks such as an extra game life. Takeaway for advertisers To reach users where they are most receptive to receiving ads, you can set specific targeting parameters or even purchase inventory via pre-packaged deals to ensure that your ads are being shown within apps of a specific category. Takeaway for publishers Deploy robust testing to achieve the best ad fit. This includes running A/B tests to see which ad spaces and formats yield the most desired actions for your app and provide the best experience for your users. Further insights This is just a sneak peek of the data available in our In-app User Privacy Report. Download the report today for further insights into consumers’ attitudes towards data and privacy, including: Which data users are most willing to share with mobile apps How to create valuable ad experiences for app users Action items for publishers to build trust and increase first-party data

As the name suggests, made-for-advertising (MFA) sites exist for one single purpose: to simultaneously buy and sell ad inventory. These domains are associated with low-quality ad inventory, poor user experience, and higher levels of invalid traffic (IVT). As a result, MFA sites waste both ad budgets and our planet’s natural resources. The good news is that advertisers can take measures to protect themselves from MFA sites, and by doing so, these sites – and their carbon footprints — will lessen in prevalence and size. What are MFA sites? Made-for-advertising (MFA) websites are sites designed to display as many advertisements as possible. Sometimes called “made-for-arbitrage” websites, MFA often feature low-quality content and use tactics such as pop-ups, auto-play videos, or intrusive ads to maximize ad revenue by charging advertisers for impressions and engagement. (Let’s be honest, though — any “engagement” is probably someone desperately trying to mute auto-play videos and escape the overwhelming popups!) Where does MFA happen? MFA is primarily an issue on web, where it accounts for nearly 10% of all ad spend. While CTV and in-app inventory is not totally immune to MFA tactics, they are considerably safer. And not only is in-app advertising much more resistant to MFA — both the share of unique apps classified as MFA and the mobile ad spend going to these apps is on the decline. According to Pixalate, mobile ad spend going to apps flagged as MFA decreased 29% from January to March 2024. Impact of MFA sites for brands It is clear that MFA sites are harmful to advertisers. Not only are the sites low-quality, they also produce high levels of IVT, which includes ad fraud. Therefore, they pose financial, reputational, and regulatory risks to advertisers. However, the damage can go even further than that — MFA sites also produce unnecessary carbon waste, undermining the efforts towards sustainability in which companies like Verve invest. Less effective campaigns MFA content funnels ad spend to low-value websites, leading to considerable budget waste. According to the ANA, MFA sites accounted for 21% of ad impressions across all channels in 2023. And the 15% of total ad spend that went to these sites amounted to a total of $10 billion. Luckily, advertisers that invest their budgets in mobile in-app and CTV are not as at-risk to these sites; however, they are also not immune.  Endangered brand safety While some traffic from MFA sites is fraudulent, much of it does originate from genuine human interaction. People are often driven to these sites via paid avenues like social media and content recommendation platforms. When a brand’s ads are then placed amid the undesirable content, the negative user experiences within the MFA site can harm that brand’s reputation. Impact of MFA sites on the environment The environmental impact of the digital advertising industry shouldn’t be underestimated. It’s why supply chain optimization (SPO) is a hot topic as companies take increased interest in cleaning up the supply path, eliminate unnecessary bids, and reduce intermediaries. Beyond just making the process more efficient, SPO also has the immense benefit of lowering carbon emissions. It’s why we at Verve partnered with Cedara, a company that identifies opportunities to do just this. “The MFA problem is not new to the advertising industry, but gained the spotlight this year with an increasing focus on SPO combined with the prioritization of sustainability from brands and agencies. In order to reach ‘Ad Net Zero,’ it’s critical for media buyers to eliminate high carbon-emitting suppliers, including MFA publishers, from the media supply chain. While not all publishers indexing high in carbon emissions are MFA, it’s safe to assume that all MFA publishers have higher emissions than other digital publishers. For instance, an MFA site can issue up to 100x more bid requests than an average web site, which results in significantly more energy usage, and hence carbon output, across network infrastructure and user devices. Ad platforms with net zero ambitions should ensure emissions transparency across their publishers, and publishers should proactively measure and reduce emissions to avoid being flagged on one of several key attributes of MFA.” Carolyn Reilly, Director of Publisher Development at Cedara MFA sites severely undermine sustainability efforts in digital advertising. A study by Ebiquity and Scope3 found that carbon waste was 26% higher on MFA sites than non-MFA sites. But considering the fact that these sites offer no value to consumers, the entirety of their carbon footprint is a waste of resources.   MFA sites are some of the worst polluters in the digital advertising industry, making it critical for environmentally-conscious brands to exclude them from their advertising strategy. How to protect your brand The reasons for wanting to ensure that your ads do not appear on these sites are clear. And luckily, there are steps you can take to protect your brand and ensure that you do not contribute to the carbon footprint of MFA sites. Learn to identify an MFA site Everyone in the digital advertising industry needs to be aware of these websites and know how to identify them. Here are the most common attributes of MFA sites: Low dwell time: Suggest users encounter obstacles like excessive ads. High bounce rates: Indicate users aren’t finding what they expected. Limited ad interaction: Suggests users aren’t engaged. Ad refresh rate:  More ads displayed per minute indicates a poor user experience. Ad density: A high volume of placement IDs per minute can mean low-quality inventory. Traffic source: Traffic from social and paid sources can indicate MFA. Create a strategy to avoid MFAs The most effective method for avoiding MFA sites is to partner with reputable ad tech firms (like Verve 😉). Supply partners should have brand safety measures in place to flag and block these sites. Since mobile in-app and CTV have much lower rates of MFAs than the web, focusing budgets on these channels is also a smart way to steer clear of such sites. Advertisers can also monitor their performance metrics to identify MFA sites. Metrics such as click-through...