Third Party Ad Validation

Dimensions:  

• The width and height of the creative must match one of the ad units supported by The Globe and Mail.
  
  

• A dimensions discrepancy occurs when the visual width and height — the actual space on the page being taken by the creative — do not match the dimensions laid out in the Document Object Model (DOM). This mismatch can cause ads to push other page elements down, disrupting the layout and user experience.
  
  

• Common causes of dimension discrepancies:

  • • Tracking pixels and extra elements – Additional elements, like tracking pixels, can alter the dimensions of the ad.

    • Overlays on creatives – Visual overlays, such as cookie warnings, may be added on top of the ad without altering its dimensions in the DOM.

• Visual and HTML dimensions need to match. 

Audio:  

• Audio can catch users off guard and compel them to close the window or tab in order to stop the sound. 

• Display ad creative with audio is not allowed.

Time to visual start:  

• Visual start measures the time it takes for a creative to render under repeatable circumstances. It is an aggregate test that is affected by multiple important individual performance factors such as file size, number of assets, code efficiency, serving platform performance and CPU usage.

• Ads must render something visible on site within 1 second.
  
  

• A few key points on how to achieve good time to visual start performance:

  • • Avoid heavy JavaScript frameworks if the functionality you actually use can be provided by more lean custom code or other less bloated libraries.

    • Keep the number of assets low by using inline CSS and JS where appropriate and by combining many small PNG images into one PNG sprite.

    • Consider that adding scripts from 3rd & 4th party measurement and brand safety providers increase load times and creative weight — often significantly. If nothing else, try to settle for one 3rd party that provides all needed functionality.

    • For rich media creatives with video or other heavy content that requires use of polite or subsequent load, always display a placeholder/image version of your message on initial load — as early as possible. The image is then replaced with the rich media content once it has finished loading.
      
      

  • Further details can be found here.

Initial load / Subload:  

• Initial load and subload are limits to the file size of all assets the creative loads as the page is loading (initial load phase) and after the page has finished loading (subload phase). This is necessary in the interest of faster pages, a better user experience and higher viewability.
  
  This ad specification considers anything before the JavaScript event onload as initial load. Anything after that event is considered subload. The creative should listen for the browser event and build triggers for subload accordingly.

• Our maximum initial load limit for display ads range from 100kb-250kb while our subload limit ranges from 300-500kb. Please review the specific creative size for exact spec requirements.
  
  

• Further details can be found here.
  
  

Animation length:

• Animation length is counted as the number of seconds with movement starting from the first rendered frame. Animation can create a severe distraction for users. 

• We allow for a maximum animation length of 15 seconds with no looping. 

CPU usage:

• Complex animations and detailed moving elements like high resolution images affect the number of calculations the CPU must make for each frame. Ads that use less CPU use less battery, increase page performance and allow for other CPU intensive elements like HD video to display without issues.
  
  

• The CPU test is based on an entry-level Dual Core CPU in order to ensure that the ads will render well on a wide range of systems (2Ghz Dual-core CPU equivalent with 2GB of RAM).
  
  

• The maximum CPU usage allowed is 30% average, 60% peak. 

• Recommendations to help reduce CPU usage:

  • Use CSS animations instead of JavaScript for smoother performance and lower CPU usage.

  • Avoid excessive or complex animations that run continuously.

  • Reduce the number of DOM elements and avoid deep nesting: a simpler structure will make the ad load faster and run more efficiently.

  • Minimize the use of heavy JavaScript logic, especially during animations.

  • Use event listeners only when necessary and remove them when not in use.

Initial file requests:

• The number of calls made to download files has a big impact on the performance of the creative and the page. This impacts the user experience and viewability.
  
  

• The number of file requests made to download assets during the initial load phase directly impacts ad performance, page load speed, and user experience. Reducing initial file requests can improve viewability and enhance overall performance.
  
  

• Understanding Initial load and Remote load:

• Hosted ads: Ads that are primarily hosted, with only essential files (e.g., tags or small scripts) served from the server. Any additional assets loaded externally will appear under "Remote Assets."

• Fully remote ads: Ads where all assets are served remotely, and only the tag is hosted.

• Mixed-load ads: Ads that combine hosted and remote elements, like an HTML index file with additional assets loaded from external sources.

• The maximum number of initial file requests is 10. Any file requests not required to load before the JavaScript event should occur during the subload phase. 

• In order to minimize the number of Initial file requests, it is recommended to consolidate assets where possible and excluding redundant requests.

HTTPS issues:

• HTTPS protects the privacy and security of users.
  
  

• All network requests made by creatives and tracking pixels must be made over HTTPS (secure).

Landing Page:

• The final URL must work properly and resolve to a single working website. Response code must be 200.
  
  

• Common issues include malformed click-through URLs, invalid click redirect URLs, problems with macro replacement in URLs, or non-working/non-existent landing pages.

Ad Verification:

• Ad verification tags are third party tags used to monitor parameters like viewability. Depending on setup they can also block an ad from displaying based on parameters like page content keywords. 

• Only monitoring tags are allowed on The Globe and Mail and our partner sites.

Heavy Ad Intervention:

• The heavy ad intervention test looks for an actual heavy ad intervention (unloading of the ad) during testing. Chrome considers an ad heavy if it uses the main CPU thread for more than 60 seconds in total, uses the main CPU thread for more than 15 seconds in any 30 second window or uses more than 4 megabytes of total network bandwidth.
  
  

• Further information on heavy ad intervention can be found here.

Duration:  

• Compares duration between media files as well as between variations to ensure all playable media files of a VAST tag have the same duration.

Required Media File:  

• The VAST XML can include multiple media files. Required media files are media files with specific properties (format, bitrate and/or resolution) that must be declared in the VAST XML in order for the VAST tag to be accepted.

• All VAST tags must include at least one mp4 file between 700 - 2000 kbps.

Bitrate:

• The bitrate is the number of bits that are processed in a unit of time. In general, a higher bitrate will accommodate higher quality. However, the higher the bit rate, the more bandwidth required to play back the video. 

• The total bitrate is the sum bitrate of all video and audio tracks plus any overhead introduced by the container.

• The total bitrate must be between 700 kbps and 2000 kbps.

VAST Version:

• VAST (Video Ad Serving Template) is a standard for communication between ad servers and video players

• We support VAST 2.0, 3.0 and 4.0. VAST 3.0 is preferred. 

Frame Rate:

• The frame rate is the rate at which consecutive images (frames) appear on a display. It is expressed in fps (frames per second).

• Supported framerates are 23.976 FPS and 29.97 FPS (24FPs/30FPS)

Aspect ratio:

• The aspect ratio describes the proportional relationship between the width and the height of the video. It is expressed as two numbers separated by a colon, as in 16:9 or 4:3.

• We support 16:9 aspect ratio

Duration:

• The duration is the length in seconds of the video.

• Duration must be between 5s and 30s.

Audio/Video Codec: 

• A codec processes video or audio and stores it in a stream of bytes. Codecs use algorithms to effectively shrink the size of the audio or video file, and then decompress it when needed.

• We support H264 codec for video files

• We support AAC codec for audio

Audio average volume:

• LUFS (loudness units relative to full scale) is the overall level of the audio track. 

• It's important to have a strictly defined overall loudness level to ensure good sounding audio and to avoid annoying dynamic bumps between commercials and programme audio. 

• The average audio test measures the LKFS/LUFS value of the audio track, compares this to a pre-determined reference level while allowing for a certain deviation.

• Audio average must be within -23 +/- 2 LUFS

Audio true peak volume:

• The true peak level is the absolute peak of an audios waveform as it will be heard once the digital audio has been converted to an analogue signal that can be played through speakers.

• The allowed true-peak maximum is -3 dBTP.

Audio sample rate:

• Sample rate is the average number of samples of audio per scond. It is expressed in Hz or kHz.

• We support 44.1 kHz or 48 kHz 

VAST XML syntax:

• A VAST file is based on XML and this test validates the syntax of that XML to make sure it conforms to the IAB VAST specification.
  
  

VAST API framework:

• Detects and optionally accepts VPAID (Video Player Ad-Serving Interface Definition) framework

• Usage of VPAID framework is not recommended with our video players as it is known to cause latency and discrepancies in reporting. 

VAST creative count:

• This check detects whether or not the VAST tag contains multiple creatives. Multi creative VAST is not allowed.

• Note that all media files and tracking URLs of the ad will be tested and will appear to be part of the same creative. 

• As multiple creative VAST tags are somewhat rare, this check calls for manual review of the ad hierarchy within the file.

CPU usage:

• Complex animations and detailed moving elements like high resolution images affect the number of calculations the CPU must make for each frame. Ads that use less CPU use less battery, increase page performance and allow for other CPU intensive elements like HD video to display without issues.
  
  

• The maximum CPU usage allowed is 30% average, 60% peak. 

Connection screening:

• Only calls to domains approved by The Globe and Mail Inc are allowed. Ads with calls to unapproved domains are not allowed.

• We refer to the Google Ad Manager Certified External Vendors list to determine our approved domains. However, we realize this list is not exhaustive of all possible domains.

• If your domain/vendor is not included on the above list, please reach out to your Account Manager to discuss further options.

M3U8 versions

• This check counts the number of M3U8 versions within the HLS playlist. 

• At least one M3U8 version must be included.

Initial file requests:

• The number of calls made to download files has a big impact on the performance of the creative and the page. This impacts the user experience and viewability. 

• The maximum number of initial file requests is 10. Any file requests not required to load before the JavaScript event should occur during the subload phase. 

HTTPS issues:

• HTTPS protects the privacy and security of users.
  
  

• All network requests made by creatives and tracking pixels must be made over HTTPS (secure).

Landing Page:

• The final URL must work properly and resolve to a single working website. Response code must be 200.
  
  

• Common issues include malformed click-through URLs, invalid click redirect URLs, problems with macro replacement in URLs, or non-working/non-existent landing pages.

Ad Verification:

• Ad verification tags are third party tags used to monitor parameters like viewability. Depending on setup they can also block an ad from displaying based on parameters like page content keywords. 

• Only monitoring tags are allowed on The Globe and Mail and our partner sites.

• Verification tags are not recommended for use with video creative as it is known to cause extra latency and discrepancies with reporting.

Heavy Ad Intervention:

• The heavy ad intervention test looks for an actual heavy ad intervention (unloading of the ad) during testing. Chrome considers an ad heavy if it uses the main CPU thread for more than 60 seconds in total, uses the main CPU thread for more than 15 seconds in any 30 second window or uses more than 4 megabytes of total network bandwidth.
  
  

• Further information on heavy ad intervention can be found here.