Highlights from DAA Summit 2023
The Digital Advertising Alliance (DAA) recently concluded its 11th annual conference at the beautiful Blackstone Hotel in downtown Chicago. This two-day event brought together industry leaders, experts, and professionals from around the world, representing associations, ad tech companies, brands, agencies, and social media platforms.
The first day of the conference (workshop day) was dedicated to providing valuable insights for day-to-day advertising operations. Attendees were updated on the DAA and DAAC's flagship programs, AdChoices and Political Ads, along with an exploration of relevant bills and legislation impacting interest-based advertising both in the US and beyond. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) also made a virtual appearance, contributing to the informative sessions.
A morning panel featured CMP partners actively involved in the DAA's CMP Complement project, namely Didomi, TrustArc, and Sourcepoint. This collaborative initiative allows partner CMPs to accept signals from the DAA's Token ID-Based Choices tool, enabling them to honour user preferences while providing space within their platforms to talk about AdChoices. This empowers brands and publishers to highlight broader CMP settings through the AdChoices icon.
Another panel focused on the advancements achieved through the DAA and DAAC's Political Ads Programs. Notably, progress has been made in serving the purple icon in a standardized way and developing an ad database registry solution. As the US gears up for the 2024 presidential election, it is expected that DSPs and agencies will increasingly adopt these self-regulatory initiatives.
Catherine Bate, President of Ad Standards, shared valuable insights during a panel focused on AdChoices program enforcement, alongside representatives from the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) accountability programs. This discussion shed light on the case summaries and investigation practices within the US, while emphasizing the significance of self-regulation within a regulated market, such as Canada.
Generative AI emerged as a recurring theme across various panels, showcasing its increasing importance within organizations. In fact, Heather West from the law firm Venable even delighted attendees with a song about the DAA Summit, generated by ChatGPT.
A significant highlight of the day was the formation of a new coalition within the DAA family. Representatives from DAA Asia & Middle East expressed their excitement to establish an AdChoices program in their respective jurisdictions. We warmly welcome them and extend our gratitude to Vatsal Asher for spearheading this initiative. To learn more about joining their emerging program, please contact DAA Asia & Middle East at AdChoices.Asia.
The second day of the DAA Summit embraced a global perspective, beginning with a delicious "Royal Canadian Breakfast" featuring fresh maple syrup brought in from northern Ontario.
Our friends from the European Interactive Digital Advertising Alliance (EDAA), responsible for administering the European version of the AdChoices program, discussed their efforts in the context of the Digital Services Act (DSA) and their ongoing work to establish best practices for Article 26. Unilever also shared their experimentation with making cookie notices more relevant, user-friendly, and aligned with their brand.
During the #Data4Good panel, the Federation for Internet Alerts (FIA Alerts) highlighted their commendable work in spreading awareness about and recovering missing children, as well as issuing alerts about severe weather events, utilizing donated online advertising space. If you're unfamiliar with FIA Alerts, please be sure to click on the link above to get involved, particularly if you're a publisher with unsold inventory.
The release of the Connected Devices Best Practices was another important announcement made by the DAA. A dedicated working group will be formed to ensure the AdChoices program is seamlessly experienced across various connected device use cases.
Throughout the day, prominent government representatives shared their perspectives on privacy, followed by practical panels discussing strategies for improved data governance. The final panel featured two small businesses sharing how digital advertising has contributed to their success. The panel called for industry-wide action to safeguard the advertising market in America against ill-considered legislative proposals that could undermine their businesses and prohibit them to deliver their messages to the people they most want to reach.
In conclusion, the DAA Summit 2023 provided invaluable insights and takeaways. Here are just a few:
Third parties should explore and engage with the DAA's Token ID-Based Choices Tool. This tool was created for the post-third-party cookie world -- if you're using any sort of identifier beyond a cookie, please understand how this consumer choice tool works.
First parties, such as brands and publishers, should leverage integration with the AdChoices program through their CMP (especially those working with Didomi, TrustArc, ConsentManager.net, Crownpeak, or Sourcepoint). Non-participating CMPs should reach out to us to get integrated.
Third parties, particularly Demand Side Platforms (DSPs) and publishers, are encouraged to actively participate in the Political Ads self-regulatory program. Integration solutions for serving the purple icon are readily available, along with a registry builder.
Familiarize yourself with the Addressable Media Identifiers (AMI) framework and ask for AMI compliance in your RFPs.
It is crucial for all companies to actively engage and maintain involvement in industry initiatives such as the DAA and DAAC.
We eagerly anticipate the next DAA Summit in New York City and the opportunity to further support the digital advertising community.