Key Points
- IAB Tech Lab has launched a Programmatic Governance Council to improve transparency in automated ad buying.
- Major firms like Omnicom Media Group and Amazon Ads joined the initiative to align industry standards.
- The group will address auction transparency, data standards and transaction integrity amid growing programmatic ad spending.
IAB Tech Lab has unveiled a new industry group aimed at improving transparency and accountability in programmatic advertising, as automation and artificial intelligence continue to reshape how digital media is bought and sold.
On Tuesday, the organization announced the creation of the Programmatic Governance Council, which will bring together agencies, publishers and ad technology platforms to establish clearer standards and operational alignment across the programmatic ecosystem.
Initial participants in the council include major holding companies, publishers and platforms such as Dentsu, Omnicom Media Group, WPP, Disney, Magnite, PubMatic, Hearst, News Corp, Yahoo, Amazon Ads, The Trade Desk, Raptive and Mediavine.
The council is expected to produce a formal charter and establish working groups focused on key industry challenges, followed by a governance framework that aligns business expectations with the technical infrastructure underpinning programmatic transactions. Over the next six to 12 months, the group aims to deliver guidance on auction transparency, signal standardization and best practices for transaction integrity.
The launch of the council comes as more than $200 billion in digital advertising is now transacted programmatically in the United States, revealing the scale and complexity of automated media buying, IAB Tech Lab said. Despite that growth, industry leaders have increasingly raised concerns about fragmented infrastructure, inconsistent practices and limited oversight.
“Programmatic advertising moves billions of dollars every day, but too often the people responsible for it are not sitting together to deal with the real operational problems,” Anthony Katsur, the CEO of IAB Tech Lab, said in a statement on Monday.
In recent years, programmatic advertising has faced criticism for its opacity, particularly around auction mechanics, bid duplication and inconsistent handling of transaction identifiers. These issues have created friction between buyers and sellers, complicating efforts to track spending and measure performance across supply chains.
“The scale of programmatic means agencies are responsible for navigating a massive supply chain on behalf of advertisers,” said Ben Hovaness, the Chief Media Officer at Omnicom Media Group. “Our clients expect clarity about where their money goes and how media is actually traded.”
IAB Tech Lab said the council will serve as a structured forum for senior leaders to address those challenges collaboratively, with the goal of establishing shared governance and clearer standards as automation and AI become more deeply embedded in advertising workflows.
More information about the council is available by clicking or tapping here.
More Stories
- IAB Tech Lab unveils agentic roadmap to scale AI-driven advertising
- IAB updates Diligence Platform as regulators scrutinize tracking technology
- IAB launches new initiative to refresh ad campaign measurements
- IAB opens public comment period on new terms for advertisers (May 2025)
- IAB: Generative AI, connected TV platforms influencing ad production (July 2025)
