PubMatic Launches Activate, Enabling Direct Deals Via Programmatic Platform

PubMatic

PubMatic said it launched Activate, a new technology that enables buyers to access premium video and CTV inventory on Pubmatic’s programmatic platform via direct deals.

Launch partners include dentsu, GroupM, Havas, LG, Mars and Omnicom Media Group Germany.

PubMatic said Activate will enable buyers to use ad dollars from the direct budgets in programmatic private marketplace or programmatic guaranteed deals. Using the system will save time and reduce costs compared to traditional insertion orders, and the technology might result in increased return on investment for buyers and increased revenue for sellers.

“Buyers and sellers of digital media are seeking a more efficient, transparent, and sustainable supply chain that delivers on programmatic’s full potential,” said PubMatic co-founder and CEO, Rajeev Goel. 

“Activate extends the successful supply path optimization strategy we pioneered more than four years ago. By seamlessly connecting buyers and content owners via a single layer of technology, we are significantly reducing the hops, discrepancies, data proliferation, opacity, and complexity in the programmatic marketplace. This will result in higher ROI for buyers and increased revenue for publishers, consistent with our mission to fuel the endless potential of internet content creators who rely on advertising as a primary source of revenue,” Goel said.

While CTV has been expanding, the industry is looking for more efficient ways to transact. PubMatic cites estimates that about 60% of CTV transactions in 2023 will be done using non-programmatic insertion orders. With Activate, the company says its total addressable market increases by $65 billion.

PubMatic said Activate incorporates technology acquired when it bought Martin in 2022.  Activate is integrated into PubMatic’s systems including its PubMatic Sell-Side Platform and Connect. 

Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.