Public Comment Open Through May 28, 2026, on Updates Aimed At Improving Transparency In Live Event Programmatic Transactions
NEW YORK, April 28, 2026 /PRNewswire/ — Today, IAB Tech Lab, the global digital advertising technical standards-setting body, announced new Attributes to describe live content and a new Substitution Macro in OpenRTB for public comment through May 28, 2026. The updates introduce standardized bidstream signals that help define whether content is a livestream, real-time, or a first broadcast, along with enhancements that allow more explicit communication of pricing and discounting between supply and demand platforms.
“As more live events move into programmatic channels, a total shift in strategy is needed; buyers must condense weekly budgets into mere hours,” said Anthony Katsur, CEO, IAB Tech Lab. “By providing clearer signals, we’re giving buyers and sellers the transparency they need to fully capitalize on ultra-premium, real-time inventory.”
The update clarifies an existing field and adds two optional fields to OpenRTB and AdCOM objects that allow sellers to describe the “liveness” of content in the bid request. These fields distinguish between content that is occurring at the exact moment a bid is sent, content that is being streamed in real time but not necessarily live, and content that is in its first scheduled broadcast window. This added layer of signaling gives buyers more precise context about the nature and timing of the inventory they are evaluating.
In tandem, updates to substitution macros refine how price-related data is passed in the bidstream, specifically enabling clearer communication of discounts and net pricing back to demand-side platforms. Together, these changes improve how both content metadata and pricing signals are expressed within OpenRTB, reducing interpretation gaps between buyers and sellers.
These enhancements address growing complexity in programmatic environments, particularly with the rise of CTV and live event inventory supported by initiatives such as the Live Event Ad Playbook. As more live and near-live programming becomes available programmatically, differences in timing and format, from live sports to premieres to streaming channels, directly influence how inventory is valued. Clearer signals help buyers make more informed bidding decisions and support more efficient pricing and yield for sellers.
“Live content signals help us better understand the context of live inventory so we can deliver buyers’ budgets effectively,” said Rob Hazan, GM, Product Management, The Trade Desk. “This enables agencies and advertisers to better achieve their marketing goals and sellers to more effectively monetize their most valuable media assets.”
The work was developed through the Programmatic Supply Chain Commit Group, with continued industry input encouraged during the public comment period, which remains open through May 28, 2026. Feedback will inform final specification updates and broader adoption across the ecosystem.
To learn more about the Attributes describing live content and the new Substitution Macro in OpenRTB and submit comments, please visit https://iabtechlab.com/openrtb/livesignals/
About IAB Technology Laboratory
Established in 2014, the IAB Technology Laboratory (Tech Lab) is a non-profit consortium that engages a member community globally to develop foundational technology and standards that enable growth and trust in the digital media ecosystem. Comprised of digital publishers, ad technology firms, agencies, brands, and other member companies, IAB Tech Lab focuses on solutions for brand safety and ad fraud; identity, data, and consumer privacy; cross-channel programmatic effectiveness and ad measurement; and the impact of LLMs and AI agents on advertising. Its work includes the OpenRTB real-time bidding protocol, ads.txt anti-fraud specification, Open Measurement SDK for viewability and verification, VAST video specification, Trusted Server, and the Agentic Roadmap initiative for agentic advertising. Board members and companies are listed at https://iabtechlab.com/about-the-iab-tech-lab/tech-lab-leadership/. For more information, please visit https://iabtechlab.com.
SOURCE IAB Tech Lab