YieldMetrics Technology: PathSource™

YieldMetrics products are built on patent-pending PathSource™ technology. Using PathSource, YieldMetrics is able to provide an unparalleled view into a site’s advertisements. Unlike alternative approaches which just provide a surface level view of advertisements on a page, PathSource examines every step of the ad serving process, actually executing the code on a page just like a browser.

The Ad Serving Process

When a user visits a web page, they simply see their browser loading a number of advertisements. But in fact, what happens behind the scenes is much more complicated: to load a single ad, the browser may contact as many as five or ten different parties. Each of these parties – ad servers, ad networks, ad exchanges, SSPs, DSPs, yield optimizers, data providers, etc. – is essentially invisible to the user, but plays a key role in actually delivering the advertisement to the user.

PathSource captures information on each of these parties, from the publisher to the advertiser, providing a more complete view of a site’s advertising operations. By identifying all of the providers that are interacting with users on a given site, publishers, advertisers, and technology providers can better optimize their operations.

How PathSource Works

PathSource begins with a farm of cloud-based servers that are outfitted with customized crawlers. These crawlers visit publisher web sites thousands of times a day, loading every advertisement. Operating within their own rich execution environment, the crawlers actually run any Javascript or Flash they encounter, enabling them to capture information for even the most complex ad processes.

As the crawlers load ads, they collect information about each of the providers they see into a large data warehouse (along with the actual ad creatives served). YieldMetrics products then leverage this data to provide critical, actionable insights to customers.

Understanding the Hierarchy: Paths

PathSource doesn’t simply recognize the various participants in the ad serving process: it actually builds a hierarchy of services, identifying the specific “Paths” by which those services were included on the page.

These Paths provide valuable detail on the route by which an advertisement was delivered to the user. For example, they can help identify how inventory is being sold (e.g., whether an advertisement was served via reservation, a network, or an exchange) and how user data is being collected.