Video carries the highest CPMs in display advertising, and both advertisers and publishers want more of it. A video ad server stores video creatives, decides which ad plays in each slot, delivers it to a player or a page, and counts impressions and clicks. This guide explains the main video formats, what VAST does, and what to look for in an ad server for video advertising.
What is a video ad server?
A video ad server does what any ad server does, but for video: it receives the request from a player or a page, checks targeting, budgets and frequency caps, picks the best video ad and returns it in a form the player understands. It then tracks the impression and whether the viewer clicked, so advertisers pay for real deliveries and publishers see what each slot earns.
Video ad formats
In-stream (in-player) video
Pre-roll, mid-roll and post-roll ads that play inside a video player, before, during or after the content. They have the highest impact and usually the highest CPMs, but need video content and a player. Settings include skip time, frequency capping and country filtering.
VAST for any player
VAST (Video Ad Serving Template) is the IAB standard most video players speak. The ad server returns a VAST document that tells the player which video file to play, which tracking events to fire and where a click goes. With a VAST tag you can serve your ads into your own player or a third-party player without custom integration.
In-video overlays
Banner overlays inside your own player, through a plugin for common players such as Video.js, JW Player, KT Player and Flowplayer.
Outstream: InPage video
Video that plays in the flow of an article, with no player needed. It is the way for sites without their own video content to earn video CPMs.
Video slider, carousel and reels
A video slider slides a small video into a corner of the page, with a close button and display timing. A video carousel shows several video ads in one unit. Reels are portrait videos for mobile, full-screen placements.
See every format on our ad formats page.
What to look for in a video ad server
- VAST support for your players and for selling to outside buyers.
- Outstream formats so pages without a player can monetise video.
- Targeting and capping: country, device, OS, browser and frequency caps, so viewers aren't shown the same ad again and again.
- Video RTB: outside buyers bid on your video inventory, and you can buy video traffic over real-time bidding.
- Delivery speed: video files are large, so creatives should come from a CDN.
- Quality control: VAST tags from outside networks can hide redirects. AdScanner scans VAST tags and the files and links inside them.
- Reporting: impressions, clicks and revenue per zone, campaign and country, in real time.
Video ads with GoAdserver
GoAdserver serves in-player video, VAST tags, in-video overlays, InPage video, sliders, carousels and reels from the same platform as banners, native, push and pop. It works under your own brand as a white-label ad network or as an ad manager for your own sites and the traffic you buy, and creative pools automatically send traffic to the videos that perform best.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need my own video player?
Not for outstream formats. InPage video, sliders, carousels and reels play without a player. In-stream ads and VAST need a player.
Can outside networks fill my video slots?
Yes. Add their VAST tag in a SmartZone to let them compete with your own campaigns, or sell the inventory to RTB buyers.
Which video format earns the most?
In-stream video inside a player usually has the highest CPMs, but only where you have video content. Outstream formats earn less per impression but work on every page.