Vivvix’s Online Video measurement covers ads served on desktop, browser-based sites in the U.S.
Coverage
Vivvix systematically collects Online Video advertising on approximately 2,000 main domains, subdomains and content pages.
On an ongoing basis, Vivvix reviews coverage to continuously add sites, manage for redirects, confirm ad supported environments, and ensure URLs are still live.
Vivvix's monitoring of Online Video encompasses ad streams up to four minutes in length served from pre-, mid-, and post-roll ad positions.
Ad Collection and Classification
Online Video ads are collected using both a spider/bot technology and human panel, operating in a standard browser environment. Outlined below are the collection methods for each.
Spider/Bot Collection
Vivvix’s spiders systematically monitor and collect ads served on each site, and Vivvix’s spider is compatible with all media players and streaming video ad formats. Sites are crawled multiple times throughout the day. As the spider visits pages, it performs several processes in real time.
1. Identifies Video Content Originating from Ad Servers
The spider analyzes the web page markup and identifies video streams that are queued up in an ad server waiting to be delivered. It collects and processes this material in sequential order. In addition, the spider searches for other video streams on the sites, launches them and looks for ads.
2. Creates a Unique Signature
Video with audio is analyzed and a unique signature is generated for matching against a Master Library.
3. Matches Against Known Signatures
As the spider creates signatures, it concurrently scans the Master Library for matching signatures of previously captured ads or non-ad content. If a match is found, the spider will write information to an Occurrence File indicating the web site, the time of collection, and a reference code that uniquely identifies the video segment. The reference is used to retrieve stored classification details about the video segment, including the name of the advertised product and a product category assignment.
4. Detects New Video Ads
If a matching signature is not found in the Master Library, the full video with audio is saved and routed to an editor for visual examination. If the video is identified as a valid commercial, the signature is sent to the Master Library for permanent storage and future match recognition. Each new ad is classified according to our proprietary Vivvix Central database of advertised products. A record is entered into the Occurrence File indicating the web site, the time of collection and the associated Vivvix Central details.
Panel Collection
Panel collection is driven by live human interest and behavior of 1.2 million panelists, comprised of 850 thousand desktop and 375 thousand mobile panelists. While the panel is representative of a cross section of consumers throughout the United States, the panel is fully anonymized, and as such personally identifiable information is not collected, such as demographic and geo-location details. Ads are passively collected as panelists organically browse the internet, using a similar imaging matching algorithm deployed in the spider collection for the purpose of classification.
Classification
• Product Classification – The service uses the Vivvix Central classification and brand/product naming conventions.
• Video Site Classification – Video sites are associated to the site category that best reflects the site’s primary business focus. Examples include: Business Finance & Investing, News & Current Events, Sports, etc. Video sites that are major portals are assigned to the Video Portals category.
Placement Detail
Vivvix collection of Online Video activity captures a variety of details pertaining to the ad placement.
Outlined below are key dimensions available in Vivvix’s reporting taxonomy.
Ad Length
For each collected unit, Vivvix reports the ad length, distinguishing between :05s, :15s, :30s, :60s, etc.
Transaction Type
When available, Vivvix collects information about the type of buy (direct vs. indirect), identifying the intermediaries participating in the deployment chain and defining the transaction type (programmatic, programmatic RTB, etc.). Each valid ad occurrence is used to identify ads served from a defined list of ad networks. When a match is found, the ad network identification is added to the record in the occurrence file. (Note: our reporting rules do not permit (1) site level detail within ad networks, or (2) spend estimates for ad network activity).
Please note that while Vivvix collects pre-, mid-, and post-role positions, it is not currently possible to identify ad position in Vivvix reports.
Ad Impression Estimation
Vivvix measures ad impressions using a combination of engagement and experience metrics for each site. Engagement metrics are provided by SimilarWeb for site visitation, average pages per visit, and average duration per visit (prior to 2018, engagement metrics were provided by comScore Video Metrix service). Experience metrics measure ad exposure for each site and are derived using industry benchmarks (Google ad rules for banner and video placement), observational data obtained from spider collection, and primary research replicating the site’s ad-to-content experience.
For Online Video, on a site-by-site basis, Vivvix uses engagement and experience metrics to calculate ad impressions by taking the product of Desktop Visitation and Average Duration per Site Visit to derive Total Time Spent on the Site, which is then adjusted by a ratio reflecting the average number of ad streams served per minute of site duration to estimate total impressions delivered. Vivvix then analyzes the sample of a site’s spidered ad occurrences to determine the distribution of ad impressions for all brands participating on that site. Each spidered ad occurrence that was collected across all pages and the full period of monthly coverage is assigned a weighted ad impression for that site. This weighted value becomes the projected impression estimate for that unique ad occurrence and the brand associated with that occurrence.
Ad Expenditure Estimation
Monthly ad expenditures are calculated by applying a cost-per-thousand (CPM) estimate against ad impression values:
Expenditure = (CPM) * (Impressions / 1000)
Site specific CPMs are aggregated from multiple resources, including published rate cards, publisher survey submissions, third-party analysis, and ad tech intermediaries and aggregators, where available. Rates are analyzed to determine the relative value of inventory served on a specific site. Vivvix’s CPMs generally reflect a more premium, direct / reserved buy for a site’s inventory. In instances where a site-specific CPM is not available, Vivvix uses the site category average. In rare instances where a site category average is not available, Vivvix will use the average for the media type.
CPMs are not adjusted for length of the ad unit.
Preliminary Expenditure Estimation
Prior to the release of final monthly ad expenditures, preliminary estimates are updated daily and based on a weighted value informed by the most current month of final spending estimates. Weighted values are defined at the property level. In instances where the most current month of final spending is not available at the property level, the weighted average for the total media channel will be used. Brands reported in preliminary daily expenditure estimates reflect confirmed sighting of ads served on the site.