Curation Is Changing Programmatic - But Not Always For The Better | AdExchanger

"For years, programmatic advertising has operated on the assumption that most buyers didn't really want to know how the system works. That's changing. More advertisers are asking harder questions about where their media dollars actually go, and those questions increasingly come from mid-market agencies that would historically rely on DSPs to manage the complexity of supply for them."

"Mid-market agencies, by contrast, have typically operated inside DSP environments, buying from what was made available to them rather than curating inventory upstream. That model was easy and fast, but it came with trade-offs, including limited visibility into supply paths, little control over what inventory was included and a heavy reliance on intermediaries."

"Curation has gained so much traction. Over the past several years, programmatic curation has evolved from packaging data with supply to optimizing supply paths in real time, and now toward more self-service models that give buyers direct control."

Mid-market agencies are shifting their approach to programmatic advertising, moving away from reliance on DSPs towards greater transparency and control over media spending. Historically, these agencies operated within DSP environments, which limited their visibility and control. However, as they seek to optimize supply paths and gain direct access to inventory, the demand for curation has surged. This evolution reflects a broader trend where advertisers are questioning the opacity of automated systems and seeking more efficient, self-service models for managing their media investments.

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