Unruly Launches Mobile-First Native Video Ad Format

Today, Unruly is launching what the marketing technology company claims is the first video ad format that dynamically adapts to the unique look and feel of any given Web page in real time across the Open Web. Unruly also announced that adidas will be piloting the new In-Feed format for its latest #predatorinstinct campaign.

Using its proprietary liquid-layout technology, Unruly In-Feed enables advertisers to deliver native video ads at scale across the Open Web. The new format dynamically injects sponsored videos seamlessly into any website’s content stream in a style that matches the site’s layout and design, providing an infinitely flexible, truly native experience for mobile users.

Additional benefits of the In-Feed format include:

• Any video length: Unlike other offerings, Unruly provides no restrictions on video length – there’s no cap at 15 seconds
• Seamless user experience: The videos begin to play silently when they are viewable on the screen. Users tap or click the video to activate a full-screen immersive video experience on mobile devices
• Programmatic audience targeting: The format is fully integrated with Unruly Activate’s programmatic insight engine for real-time optimization and reporting
• Sharing functionality and third-party tracking available as standard: Click-through URLs are also supported on view completion

Advertisers are only charged when at least 50 percent of their ad is in view for three continuous seconds, exceeding current IAB guidelines on viewability, which recommend that a video ad is in view for two continuous seconds. All ad content is also fully disclosed according to IAB guidelines.

Unruly’s In-Feed format is optimized for mobile delivery and is being launched in response to a growing demand from brands who are using video to reach and engage consumers on their smartphone and tablet devices. A recent BI Intelligence report predicted that smartphones and tablets will account for nearly 70 percent of all online video ad views by the end of 2016.

In a press release, Scott Button, founder and chief executive at Unruly, says, “There’s a growing expectation that social ads will be delivered as part of the content stream and deeply integrated within the content experience rather than being shoved off in a sidebar or banner.” He adds, “Facebook premium video ads are set to shake up the video ecosystem and Unruly is now providing advertisers with even more choice, allowing them to launch in-feed video ads across the Open Web, in premium media environments.”

IDG is one of more than 100 premium publishers who are already running Unruly’s In-Feed format across their titles, including Macworld. Simon Jary, IDG’s U.K. publishing director, says, “Unruly’s native In-Feed format is easy to install and quickly brings in revenue. The content is often engaging, too. We were impressed with it to the degree that we have now deployed it across all of IDG U.K.’s consumer sites. We originally only used it to deliver incremental revenue for our mobile inventory, but it has been such a success, we’ve now pushed it across our desktop inventory, too.”

Kenneth Suh, senior vice president of global business development at Unruly, adds, “For publishers, this format provides a great option to utilize their mobile ad inventory and ramp up mobile and video revenue. Because the format is dynamically injected into the content feed, there’s zero setup required from the publisher and we’re providing clear disclosure for consumers.”