Coalition for Better Ads Launches New Certification Program for Digital Ad Experiences

May 11, 2021

As featured on BetterAds.org

AdColony, Kargo, Mediavine, and Ogury are First Advertising Sellers with Ad Experiences Certified as Compliant with Better Ads Standards

The Coalition for Better Ads today introduced a new program to review online ad experiences sold in the market to validate their compliance with Better Ads Standards that aim to improve the online ad experience for consumers. AdColony, Kargo, Mediavine, and Ogury, members of the Coalition, are the first companies to have their ad experiences reviewed and certified as compliant with the applicable Better Ads Standards for desktop web, mobile web, and short-form video.

"The Better Ads Standards identify the ad experiences that are least preferred and most annoying to consumers, falling beneath a threshold of consumer acceptability," said Neal Thurman, director of the Coalition for Better Ads. "This program responds to strong interest from companies that sell ad experiences for the ability to demonstrate their adherence to the best practices embodied in the Standards to their business partners."

The new initiative is part of the Coalition's Better Ads Experience Program. Certified companies are listed on the Coalition's registry of participating companies and eligible to use a seal developed by the Coalition in their marketing materials.

"AdColony is focused on creating the highest quality mobile in-app ad experiences that deliver outcomes for brands and publishers," said Gabriella Stano-Aversa, director of strategy and planning of AdColony. "We're excited to be on the forefront of this evolving space. The Better Ads Standards is essential to achieving these objectives as an industry and we are proud to be among the first companies certified as part of this program."

"The new Coalition for Better Ads certification program ensures that users have quality ad experiences. User experience is core to Kargo's mission of putting art in ad tech. We are excited to help the Coalition align the entire Open Web with the Better Ads Standards and drive outcomes for marketers," said Michael Shaughnessy, Chief Operating Officer, Kargo.

"Since their release, the Better Ads Standards have informed our efforts to provide the best user experience for visitors to our portfolio of sites," said Brad Hagmann, VP of Ad Operations, Mediavine. "The Coalition's certification program will provide additional tools to highlight our compliance to advertisers and publishers who share our commitment to the Standards."

"Creating respectful user ad experiences is at the heart of what we do at Ogury," said Benjamin Lanfry, VP, Strategic Publisher Partnerships, at Ogury. "Upholding the Better Ads Standards is not only good for consumers, but it also benefits advertisers and publishers."

The Coalition will recertify companies annually, including reviewing new or modified ad experiences.

Companies interested in learning more should visit www.betterads.org/program.