In the complex ecosystem of mobile app advertising, one of the top concerns for advertisers is inventory quality.
Advertisers want to know that the app inventory they purchase is safe and reliable. For publishers, providing that assurance to advertisers is essential to maintaining a strong revenue stream.
Fortunately, there is a simple and powerful way to do that. It’s called app-ads.txt.
What is app-ads.txt?
App-ads.txt is a text file that allows app developers to declare publicly who is authorized to sell their inventory. Ads.txt stands for “Authorized Digital Sellers”, while app-ads.txt specifically denotes app publishers. Launched in 2017, ads.txt is an initiative of the IAB as part of their strategy to combat fraud in digital advertising. By 2018, over 50% of the top 5000 programmatic sites had already implemented ads-txt.
In order to leverage app-ads.txt, app publishers must include the text file on their website. The file lists the digital sellers that have been given authority to sell the app inventory, including SSPs and ad networks. When searching for inventory on behalf of advertisers, demand partners ‘crawl’ publisher sites looking for those with app-ads.txt. The text file verifies that the inventory is sourced from authorized sellers only. This is a clear indicator that the inventory is not fraudulent, and is safe for bidding. Publishers that do not have app-ads.txt on their websites risk losing out on substantial revenue from advertisers.
How does app-ads.txt help mobile app publishers earn more ad revenue?
As advertisers become more wary of fraud, they are looking for tools to keep them safe. App-ads.txt is a critical addition to their safety toolbox. Here are two reasons why:
- App-ads.txt provides advertisers with authorized in-app inventory: More advertisers are now relying on adherence to app-ads.txt to make sure they don’t waste money on unauthorized inventory. Publishers who adopt app-ads.txt are less at risk of being removed from advertisers’ target media lists, raising their potential advertising revenue.
- App-ads.txt provides a critical pillar of ad fraud prevention: By blocking unauthorized publishers who impersonate legitimate apps and mislead brands into spending budget on fake inventory, app-ads.txt helps reduce instances of fraud. This means that authenticated publishers can retain more of the ad revenue from inventory genuinely targeted to their app.
As publishers realize the revenue opportunity of app-ads.txt implementation, more are taking advantage and adopting app-ads.txt on their websites. That is great news for publishers and advertisers alike.
How to ensure you added app-ads.txt correctly?
Implementing the app-ads.txt file correctly to your website is essential to gaining the benefits. For publishers working with Start.io, we’ve outlined the process step-by-step in our Help Center.
Click here to learn how to add app-ads.txt to your website, and start boosting your publisher revenue as soon as possible.
