Last month (23 May, 2016) Criteo announced the launch of its new header bidding platform for publishers, Criteo Direct Bidder. Marc Grabowski, executive vice president, global supply and business development, Criteo speaks exclusively with ExchangeWire about how the new platform works and how it aims to leverage the new platform to drive higher publisher revenue. 

ExchangeWire: How does Criteo’s new header bidding platform work?

Marc Grabowski: Criteo Direct Bidder enables Criteo to buy impressions directly and transparently from a publisher.

The solution is specifically designed to address the pain points for ad ops and sales executives of digital publishing houses that want to maximise revenue. It directly connects publishers’ inventory to Criteo’s unique demand, transparently delivering the top bid for every impression, and ensures publishers retain the full value of those bids.

By directly connecting publisher inventory to Criteo’s demand, in an ecosystem that operates as a virtuous cycle of opportunity for all parties, publishers drive higher revenues and benefit from greater transparency, elimination of third-party fees, as well as flexible integration. It also means that our advertising clients benefit from expanded access to inventory and media-buying efficiencies, enabling them to realise higher campaign performance and ROI.

How does it fit in with the existing header-bidding ecosystem? 

The rise of large platform players, distributed content, and ad blocking have shifted the power of monetisation away from publishers. Header-bidding solutions, initially conceived to streamline bidding for publisher inventory, still do not represent a win-win scenario for advertisers and publishers.

Criteo Direct Bidder provides a direct, clean pipe to a publisher’s inventory, enabling us to drive better audience reach, inventory access, and inventory quality for our advertisers. We do not take third-party fees from publishers for the impressions we buy. We have over 21,000 servers distributed globally that are strategically located in order to return bid responses as fast as possible, and today we evaluate over 120 billion daily bid requests.

Are there challenges with header bidding, as it currently exists, that Criteo aims to solve with its Direct Bidder? 

Before header bidding, managing inventory through a 'waterfall' was a manual process and an inefficient use of our inventory. Through Criteo Direct Bidder, all inventory is now directly connected with Criteo’s unique demand, so we have a clear view and know the full value of impressions that we buy.

It’s important that our partners can integrate with our ad tech stack in the way that is mutually beneficial; and our bidder solution does exactly that. Coupled with better access to our bid landscape, we can optimise our tech stack to ensure we are maximising revenue whilst delivering superior service back to our partners.

Criteo Direct Bidder is different from traditional bidders due to the unique demand we bring to publishers that is not found from other sources. We are a supply-side solution aimed at capturing more supply.

How does Direct Bidder evolve Criteo’s current experiences with header bidding technology? 

Overall, our objective is to create a unified auction across all demand, and header bidding helps us deliver this. Specifically, our platform enables publishers to regain control over the tech stack, increasing competition among demand sources and optimising yield effectively, all while optimising user experience. 

Criteo Direct Bidder provides access to high-volume, high-quality traffic, which comes from its advertiser base of more than 15,000 global clients. This solution ensures publishers retain the full value of the impressions that Criteo buys, while it continues to drive profitable sales for advertisers. Lastly, Direct Bidder is already connected to hundreds of publishers globally and provides direct access to its high-volume demand, and USD$1.5bn (£1.18bn) global advertising spend. Scale is key for us.

How do both publishers and advertisers benefit from using Direct Bidder? 

We’re already averaging 20-40% higher publisher revenue for our ad buys, translating into higher value for advertisers, as well. Criteo Direct Bidder is a win-win for our publishers, our clients, and us. Publishers who are not currently working with Criteo could see an even greater lift in yield, since they can better monetise our demand, and eliminate third-party fees and retain the full value of standard display ads and native units that we buy directly. 

What does Direct Bidder bring to Criteo as a business?

Criteo was an early pioneer in header bidding and is now releasing a product that further increases value for both publishers and advertisers alike. As we shift our buying to this new solution, we expect our clients to achieve higher campaign performance from the solution’s media buying efficiencies.

Perhaps the best way to surmise the opportunity comes from IDC’s program vice president, media and entertainment, Karsten Weide, who says: “Header bidding is now at critical mass in the US and Western Europe; and this year the growth for this segment is expected to be 100%, according to IDC. As publishers look to balance page performance with header bidding, they need to be highly selective in determining which bidders are included in their header. Publishers will choose the partners who are proven to offer transparency, distinct demand, technical efficiency, and better CPMs. Our next generation header-bidding technology is now connected to over 100 publishers, delivering very promising performance.”

This is an exciting development for us as a business, our partners, and customers, and the industry.