Terms defined to be read, not skimmed.
Definitions in plain language, two to three sentences each, written so a newcomer can act on them. Each entry states the term, what it is, and where it connects to the rest of the system.
42 terms · written to be read
ARPDAU
Average revenue per daily active user: total revenue in a day divided by DAU. The topline health metric for ad-monetized apps.
app-ads.txt
An IAB spec file at the root of a developer website listing every ad system authorized to sell that developer inventory. Buyers crawl and filter against it.
ads.txt
The web equivalent of app-ads.txt, listing authorized sellers for a website domain.
AVOD
Advertising-based video on demand: on-demand streaming monetized by ads rather than subscription.
ACR
Automatic content recognition: fingerprinting of on-screen content collected by some TV platforms, enabling exposure-based targeting and measurement within platform terms.
Ad exchange
The real-time matching engine connecting many sellers and buyers. Modern platforms combine exchange mechanics with SSP functions.
CPM
Cost per mille: the price of one thousand impressions in a deal. What the invoice line says, before effectiveness is computed.
CSAI
Client-side ad insertion: ads requested and rendered by the player at playback time. Common on the web, avoided on television because it buffers.
CTV
Connected TV: televisions and devices running streaming applications, including Google TV and Android TV. Where the living-room inventory lives.
COPPA
The US Children's Online Privacy Protection Act. Child-directed apps operate under restricted data processing, signaled by a flag the auction respects.
DAU
Daily active users: unique users who use the app on a given day. The denominator for ARPDAU and for revenue projection models.
Deal ID
The identifier that ties an impression to a specific negotiated agreement, so PMP and guaranteed deals are priced and reported separately from open auction.
DSP
Demand-side platform: the system agencies and advertisers use to buy impressions programmatically across many SSPs.
eCPM
Effective cost per mille: revenue divided by impressions, multiplied by one thousand. The comparable price of an inventory slice after the fact.
Fill rate
The share of ad requests that returned a billable impression. Read per demand source to see where demand is thin.
FAST
Free ad-supported streaming television: linear-style channels monetized entirely by advertising, delivered over the internet.
GIVT
General invalid traffic: known bots, datacenter traffic and malformed requests, filtered by pattern matching.
GPP
Global privacy platform: the IAB signal format carrying US state privacy preferences alongside TCF consent.
In-app bidding
An auction model where every demand source bids on every impression simultaneously and the highest bid wins. Also called header bidding on the web.
IVT
Invalid traffic: impressions generated by non-human or non-genuine means. Split into GIVT, general invalid traffic, and SIVT, sophisticated invalid traffic.
LTV
Lifetime value: the total value of a user or cohort over their lifetime, combining purchases and ad revenue.
Mediation
The layer through which multiple ad networks and demand sources compete for each impression from one SDK integration.
MMP
Mobile measurement partner: an independent attribution provider that joins ad interactions to installs and in-app events for campaign measurement.
OpenRTB
The IAB open standard for real-time bidding communication: the bid request and bid response formats that SSPs and DSPs exchange. Version 2.6 is current.
OMID
Open Measurement Interface Definition: the IAB standard allowing viewability and verification measurement through the Open Measurement SDK on mobile.
OTT
Over the top: video delivered over the internet, bypassing traditional distribution. The umbrella term covering CTV apps and services.
Podding
Grouping ads into structured breaks in streaming content, with slot counts, ordering, competitive separation and frequency control.
PMP
Private marketplace: an invitation-only auction with deal IDs and deal-level floors, scoped to selected inventory for preferred buyers.
Programmatic guaranteed
A fixed-commitment deal: agreed impressions at an agreed CPM, trafficked through the platform with automated pacing.
Retention
The share of users who return after their first session, measured at day intervals. The metric that ad load policy protects.
sellers.json
An IAB file an exchange publishes mapping each seller account ID to a legal entity and seller type. The buyer-side registry for supply path verification.
schain
Supply chain object: an OpenRTB structure on bid requests tracing every seller node from publisher to final auction, so buyers can verify the path.
SIVT
Sophisticated invalid traffic: fraudulent traffic designed to evade detection, scored from behavioral signals rather than known lists.
SSAI
Server-side ad insertion: advertising stitched into a video stream on the server before delivery, the standard on CTV.
SSP
Supply-side platform: the system publishers connect to that auctions their inventory to programmatic demand and manages yield on their behalf.
SKAdNetwork
Apple attribution framework for iOS install measurement with privacy thresholds, limiting postback detail in exchange for user privacy.
TCF
Transparency and consent framework: the IAB consent framework for GDPR regions, version 2.2 current. Consent strings travel in bid requests.
Unified auction
A decision that combines real-time bidding demand with non-bidding waterfall networks in one evaluation, so both compete on equal recorded terms.
VMAP
Video multiple ad breaks playlist: an IAB format describing where ad breaks fall in a video and how many slots each break holds.
VAST
Video ad serving template: the IAB format describing video ads and their tracking so any compliant player can render them.
Win rate
The share of auctions a demand source won among those it responded to. A diagnostic for bid quality and latency.
Waterfall
The legacy sequencing model: demand sources are asked in order by assumed price until one accepts. Leaves money undiscovered whenever the ordering is wrong.
How entries are added and corrected.
Terms are added when they appear in our own pages or in conversations with partners, and the glossary grows from actual use rather than from a word list. Corrections follow the blog standard: logged on the entry, visibly. Anyone can propose a term or a correction through the contact form; useful ones ship with credit on request.
Speak programmatic fluently.
The guides carry the long-form versions of the most requested terms, starting with the app-ads.txt definitive guide.
Plain language · connected entries · corrections logged