Ad Age reports that the Media Rating Council has released its final standards for digital ad auctions, a significant step toward giving advertisers greater transparency into how pricing and outcomes are determined across automated media marketplaces.
The effort was initiated by Omnicom Media, which worked alongside the MRC, major trade bodies including the 4As, ANA and IAB, and a broad coalition of agencies, publishers, tech vendors and leading auctioneers such as Meta, TikTok, Disney/Hulu and The Trade Desk to shape the framework.
The standards aim to address a long-standing frustration for marketers by calling for clearer disclosure around auction mechanics, winner logic, fees, discounts and price floors—an issue made more urgent as AI-driven automation accelerates. While the guidelines are voluntary and adoption is not guaranteed, Omnicom Media leaders argue they give advertisers a practical lever to compare platforms, reward openness and reduce exposure to opaque practices that can materially impact media performance and cost.
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Read the details in today’s edition of Ad Age’s weekly Emerging Technology News and Trends report.
Read the release from MRC here.
Review the Standards here.