It’s easy to confuse display and programmatic ads, especially with the strides that Google has made in its automated and real-time bidding capabilities.

The largest difference between programmatic and display is:

• Programmatic refers to how ads are bought.
• Display refers to the format of how ads appear.

The second biggest difference between display and programmatic is the ability to buy ads across platforms. Display ads are more commonly referred to when placing ads within one specific ad network, such as the Google Display Network. Programmatic advertising, on the other hand, takes display media to the next level. Multiple platforms exist for programmatic, such as sell-side platforms (SSPs) and demand-side platforms (DSPs), allowing advertisers to buy ad inventory across an open network of platforms.

• Audience.
• Bidding strategy.
• Budget.
• Creative and assets.
• Placements.

Automated technology has made significant strides throughout the years. There are many types of programmatic platforms.

The three main types of platforms are:

• Sell-side platform. Also known as a “supply-side platform,” this platform allows publishers to sell their ad impressions to advertisers in real time. This platform encompasses both DSPs and ad exchanges.
• Demand-side platform. This platform allows advertisers to purchase ad inventory across multiple platforms at once.
• Ad exchangers. This is how SSPs flow their ad inventory to DSPs. DSPs connect to an ad exchanger, where ad prices fluctuate based on the competitiveness of that inventory.

To familiarize yourself with the different platform types, let’s take a look at some of the major players in each category.

A comprehensive list of SSPs for publishers includes:

• Google Ad Manager.
• Amazon Publisher Services.
• OpenX.
• Google AdMob.
• Yahoo Ad Tech.
• TripleLift.
• PubMatic.
• Verizon Media.
• Xandr (Microsoft).
• Index Exchange.
• Sovrn.
• Magnite.
• Media.net.
• Criteo.

If you’re looking for a video SSP, some of the leading companies include:

• SpotX.
• Teads.
• AdColony (now DigitalTurbine).

While there are many more available to publishers, these are companies you may have heard of but might not have associated with programmatic technology.

Similar to SSPs, these company names may ring a bell and offer DSPs.

Some of the top DSPs include:

• Display & Video 360 (Google).
• The Trade Desk.
• Amazon DSP.
• LiveRamp.
• Adobe Advertising Cloud DSP.
• StackAdapt.
• Amobee.
• Yahoo Ad Tech.
• AdRoll.
• Basis (formerly Centro).
• RhythmOne.
• Choozle.
• BrightRoll.

Some of the larger DSPs for Connected TV and video include:

• TubeMogul.
• OneView (Roku).
• MediaMath.