With 30 years of experience, Anthony Katsur is an AdTech veteran who has navigated the industry's tumultuous evolution from its beginnings to its current state. Today, he oversees the development of key technical criteria that enhance the efficiency of this multi-billion dollar market at the IAB Tech Lab, renowned as the preeminent global authority for establishing technical standards in the industry. In this interview, we discuss the inherent global nature of technical standards. Crucial protocols necessitate top-tier recognition and can solely be instituted by international standards-setting organizations, highlighting the Tech Lab's commitment to catering to a genuinely global audience.

This interview has been edited and condensed. Comments collected on September 21, 2023.

With a career spanning nearly three decades, Anthony Katsur has been a witness to the industry's With a career spanning nearly three decades, Anthony Katsur has been a witness to the industry's evolution from its nascent stages. From the pioneering days of when ads were hard-coded onto webpages before he joined ad server platforms NetGravity and then DoubleClick, to his instrumental role in building MediaMath (now Infillion), and his tenure at Rubicon Project (now Magnite), he has gone through both the sell and buy sides of the ad tech spectrum. Prior to assuming his role as CEO of the IAB Tech Lab, Katsur contributed significantly to Nexstar Media Group, the largest local broadcasting television company in the United States, steering their digital transformation journey.

"WE'RE IN THIS REALLY INTERESTING AND EXISTENTIAL TIME FOR THE ECOSYSTEM, AND I THOUGHT WHO BETTER TO SOLVE IT THAN SOMEONE WHO'S BEEN HERE SINCE THE START!"

Katsur’s decision to lead the Tech Lab was driven by a deep-rooted desire to give back to an industry he's been deeply invested in for three decades. His passion for the dynamic world of ad tech, characterized by innovation and risk-taking, motivated him to take up this pivotal role. He recognizes the industry's current juncture as one marked by pivotal shifts, with privacy concerns, the transition from linear television to connected TV, and the evolving landscape of measurement posing both challenges and opportunities. The transformation from linear TV to connected TV alone, involving an estimated $180 billion in global spending, is a monumental undertaking that will span the next decade.

In this era defined by privacy constraints, Katsur sees measurement becoming increasingly complex. He relishes tackling these substantial challenges, viewing them as opportunities to drive positive change within the ecosystem. With unwavering enthusiasm and a wealth of experience, Katsur believes that the IAB Tech Lab as himself are uniquely positioned to steer the industry through these transformative times. As he puts it, "We're in this really interesting and existential time for the ecosystem, and I thought who better to solve it than someone who's been here since the start!"

The first major topic we delved into is OM SDK and its recent update to enhance compatibility for CTV measurement. The CTV advertising market reached a zenith in 2023, surpassing $25.9 billion. Now more than ever, the necessity for unified measurement is evident. To achieve industrial standardization in measurement, the IAB Tech Lab introduced the OM SDK, a universal set of APIs that swiftly paved its way in the industry. “It all began at an IAB event, the Annual Leadership Meeting in the United States, where Marc Pritchard from Procter & Gamble underscored the crucial need for standardized viewability metrics. In response, the industry sprang into action, giving birth to OM SDK.” recalls Anthony. Initially geared towards viewability metrics, OM SDK swiftly became the cornerstone of measurement standardization, creating a shared language for the entire industry. Serving as a translation layer, it ensures consistent measurement practices across diverse platforms. “The journey started with mobile apps, expanded into mobile web and desktop web, and has now ventured into CTV. Excitingly, it's already available for iOS and Android TV, with plans for a Q4 launch on LG and Samsung platforms.” adds Katsur. “OM SDK offers many advantages, particularly benefiting media companies and programmatic ecosystem vendors. It simplifies integration by providing a single entry point for measurement vendors, streamlining engineering and operational processes.” Publishers, too, reap the rewards, easily integrating with multiple measurement vendors through a standardized set of APIs, thus saving valuable time and resources. “The success story of OM SDK is staggering, with over 155 global companies adopting it and a staggering three billion devices worldwide utilizing this framework. Notably, over 60% of its adoption has taken place on the international stage, establishing a standardized and unified dataset that drives the industry forward.” says Katsur. 

"60% OF OM SDK ADOPTION HAS TAKEN PLACE ON THE INTERNATIONAL STAGE, ESTABLISHING A STANDARDIZED AND UNIFIED DATASET THAT DRIVES THE INDUSTRY FORWARD."

He also highlights the robust adoption of OM SDK in mobile and desktop environments, driven by advertisers' insistence on standardized metrics. Advertisers are increasingly pushing for the use of their own SDKs, underlining the importance of consistency in measurement. The question is whether the CTV industry is moving swiftly enough to embrace these standards and the critical need for standardization and streamlining of processes. “In the context of connected TV, OM SDK's adoption is vital, particularly in addressing issues like ‘zombie television’ and the detection of fraudulent activities. OM SDK also plays a significant role in determining whether a TV is on or off, offering anti-fraud capabilities that are crucial in the CTV space.” Moreover, the conversation extended to the importance of normalization and standardization, which go beyond viewability metrics. These principles are essential in covering various metrics, creating a unified dataset that simplifies decision-making for advertisers across diverse platforms. “In the supply chain, there's a call for greater adoption of tools like the SupplyChain Object, which tracks the journey of ads before reaching the buyer, contributing to fraud prevention and sustainability efforts. Furthermore, the adoption of standards like VAST 4.0, with its anti-fraud benefits, is encouraged at an industry-wide level. Balancing privacy and data-driven advertising also emerges as a critical concern, necessitating the development of more robust standards in areas like addressability and tokenization. The industry is actively exploring privacy-enhancing technologies such as differential privacy and secure multi-party compute to ensure secure audience tokenization.” says Katsur.

Learn more about OM SDK for CTV ⇲

Achieving addressability across all television environments is a clear course of action for the IAB Tech Lab “We’re aiming to create a universally addressable framework.” Acknowledging the continued significance of linear television's evolution highlights the imperative for standards in this rapidly changing landscape. In conclusion, the industry's success hinges on the adoption of existing standards on a broader scale and the active development of new ones, particularly in addressing key areas like addressability and privacy. Collaboration across regions is deemed essential for these standards' success, ensuring a unified approach to measurement and advertising practices. To the IAB Tech Lab, Europe’s changing TV landscape is seen as a key blueprint for a good standardization action plan. Katsur willingly acknowledged the significant changes in Europe and the linear TV industry. He stresses the importance of establishing standards, especially within the local CTV landscape, where user experiences and new products continue to emerge. 

And when it comes to user experience, it is impossible to steer clear of the topic of attention. This next industry ‘Grail’ has taken the center stage in industry conversations, with numerous new players introducing diverse methods to measure the level of attention users give to ads. As we're aware, this has led to significant industry perplexity, as advertisers and media agencies experiment with multiple solutions, often without a precise understanding of what they should be tracking. This underscores the imperative for uniformity and standardization. "The attention economy and metrics surrounding attention are genuinely fascinating. It's amazing that as an industry, we've reached this level of scrutiny and detail. It definitely needs standards." Katsur says, emphasizing “the need for standards and metric normalization” recognizing “that we are still in the early stages of attention measurement.” He elaborates on the role of the IAB Tech Lab in defining valid attention metrics. “While the IAB plays a crucial role in facilitating discussions and agreements, the Tech Lab's role will be to operationalize and ensure consistent adoption of future attention standards, wherever they are”. But while the criteria for upcoming standards setting are still unknown, Katsur clearly highlights the significance of attention metrics in advertising, likening it to the evolution from viewability. “Attention goes beyond just whether an ad is seen, focusing on how long users pay attention to it.”

Learn more about Attention measurement ⇲

This made us move on to discuss the impending end of third-party cookies and the challenges it presents to advertisers. Katsur doesn’t hide his concerns about the timeline and emphasizes the need for proactive preparation. “Google has been a really good partner. We've scrutinized them tremendously over the past, and they've always been very transparent with us. But I’ve told them: Their Q3-Q4 date next year for third-party depreciation: I think it's terrible timing. I believe, as we all know globally, that our industry's biggest time of the year is Q4, so I think the timing is wrong. I think it should be moved to Q1 2025.” explains Katsur. And it cannot be denied that the IAB Tech Lab is doing everything possible to prepare for and support this transition: they introduced Seller-Defined Audiences (SDA) as an initiative to address the changing landscape. SDA offers a token-less, ID-less solution for defining and purchasing audiences, going beyond contextual signals to incorporate various data sources. They also launched the Google Chrome Privacy Sandbox Task Force, which analyzes the impact of Chrome's changes. Katsur emphasizes the importance of understanding the Privacy Sandbox, as it represents a fundamental change in the digital advertising ecosystem.

"A COOKIE-LESS FUTURE IS INEVITABLE, AND WE ARE ACTIVELY PREPARING FOR IT. JOIN THE TECH LAB, JOIN THE WORKING GROUPS THAT ARE ESSENTIAL FOR YOUR BUSINESS. JOINING THE TECH LAB IS AKIN TO JOINING A GYM. JUST BECAUSE YOU'VE JOINED THE GYM AND STARTED PAYING YOUR MONTHLY FEE DOESN'T MEAN YOU'LL IMMEDIATELY LOSE WEIGHT OR ACHIEVE RESULTS. YOU'VE GOT TO GO TO THE GYM."

Throughout the interview, Katsur has been quite vocal in encouraging industry stakeholders to engage with the IAB Tech Lab, emphasizing the importance of international input and direct marketplace feedback in the development of industry standards. "We have a robust group of international members, but we need more. I don't have my finger on the pulse of the French, German, Indian, and Australian markets every day. We rely on our members for that information. We work closely with IAB Europe and local IAB’s, but there's nothing better than receiving direct input from the marketplace regarding the standards we are developing. So, I would encourage all industry stakeholders to engage with us. We welcome and value your involvement" explains Katsur. “A cookie-less future is inevitable, and we are actively preparing for it. Join the tech lab, join the working groups that are essential for your business. Joining the tech lab is akin to joining a gym. Just because you've joined the gym and started paying your monthly fee doesn't mean you'll immediately lose weight or achieve results. You've got to go to the gym."

Learn more about the IAB Tech Lab here.