NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwired - August 24, 2016) - Dstillery, a trailblazer in big data intelligence, and White Ops, the leader in sophisticated invalid traffic detection and prevention, today announced an expansion of its partnership that combines the company's market-leading audience engagement platform with the industry's first sophisticated invalid traffic (SIVT) accredited anti-fraud solution. The expanded partnership is driven by, and focused on, addressing the rapidly growing issue of mobile ad fraud.
According to eMarketer, mobile digital ad spending is the fastest growing industry segment and will eventually be the largest in ad spend -- growing from $69 billion last year to almost $200 billion by 2019. As with any medium, the bigger the spend, the bigger the target from criminals and fraudsters. These problems for marketers are underscored in White Ops' 2015 Bot Baseline study, which found 38 percent of impressions originating from devices reported as mobile and identified desktop bots that mimic mobile browsing, skewing engagement metrics. A bot's ability to not only mimic mobile browsers but target specific CPMs and demographics and fool viewability metrics, underscore not only the severity of the problem but also the complexity of detecting ad fraud.
"Dstillery has never shied away from addressing the money hungry elephant in the room," said Tom Phillips, CEO of Dstillery. "That's why we have been aggressive and proactive in identifying and attacking fraud and invalid traffic head on. Our success to date, where others continue to struggle, is due to a focus on innovation and doing what it takes, not what is convenient. In concert with our own proprietary capabilities, we saw unique value and synergy with White Ops technology very early on and together, we provide a definitive competitive edge to Dstillery's global client base."
The growth and virulence of fraudulent and other invalid digital traffic prompted the Media Ratings Council (MRC) to establish rigorous standards for the detection and filtration of SIVT. In June, White Ops obtained a first-of-its kind accreditation certifying White Ops' SIVT detection function and SIVT impression measurements compliance with the MRC's Minimum Standards for Media Rating Research, the MRC's Invalid Traffic (IVT) Detection and Filtration Guidelines and the applicable industry digital measurement guidelines by the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB).
"White Ops is about media transparency, accountability and action, not blaming and shaming," said Michael Tiffany, co-founder and CEO at White Ops. "Dstillery was one of our earliest key partners and most ardent supporters and they share our view of driving real and substantive change across the digital ad ecosystem. Our MRC accreditation is evidence of our commitment and determination to make an impact and our partnerships with innovative providers like Dstillery are a show of solidarity and action toward the common goal."
