Programmatic, DSP and connected TV guides

Programmatic advertising is buying display, video, audio and TV space through software rather than by ringing round publishers. A demand-side platform (DSP) looks at each available impression, decides in a fraction of a second whether it's worth buying for you, and bids. It's how brands reach people across thousands of sites and apps without striking thousands of separate deals.

Connected TV sits in the same world. Ads on smart TVs and streaming apps can now be bought, targeted and measured much like other digital media, which has opened TV up to brands that could never have paid for a traditional campaign. The hard parts are choosing decent inventory, keeping frequency sensible and linking what people saw on the big screen to what they did afterwards.

These guides explain how the pieces fit together. You can also read about our DSP and programmatic buying, connected TV, display advertising and video and native ads.