Ad-Tech Execs Weigh In On Facebook's Entry Into Header Bidding

Facebook’s announcement last week that it will enter header bidding provoked diverse reactions from ad-tech executives. RTBlog asked a few for their take on the move and what it means for the ad-tech ecosystem. Here’s what they had to say:

Mike Caprio, GM of programmatic at Sizmek, put Facebook's actions into context: “The bigger picture is surely around Facebook’s continued push to align itself closer with publishers. First, its Instant Articles both speeds up  content delivery and protects against ad blocking with the Facebook App. Then there's its public push against ad blocking on desktop, and now its entrance into header bidding to gain ‘first-look’ advantage over inventory across the Web.”

Caprio sounded a warning for publishers: “For the publishing industry, this means that Facebook will be driving demand at a higher CPM than in the open market, but it comes at a cost.  Continued reliance on Facebook as a platform puts publishers between a rock and a hard place.  Today it means keeping the wolves in the ecosystem at bay, but looking toward the future, this friend-enemy relationship may leave some [publishers] extinct."

Jon Schulz, CMO of Viant, isn’t surprised by Facebook’s move: "Header bidding has become hugely popular with 70% of publishers now adopting the technology. It’s become one of the industry's biggest challenges to Google DoubleClick's monopoly, so it comes as no surprise that Facebook has joined the party.”