Mumbai: IAB Tech Lab, the global digital advertising technical standards-setting body, has released its Live Event Ad Playbook, featuring the new Concurrent Streams API specification designed to simplify the monetization of live streaming events. Developed with leadership and collaboration from Amazon, FreeWheel, Index Exchange, and NBCUniversal, the initiative aims to provide transparency and foresight to manage high-stakes moments while ensuring a premium ad-supported live viewing experience.
“Streaming is now the dominant form of television viewership in the U.S., and the rest of the world is rapidly following suit. Live events — whether sports, news, or cultural moments — are increasingly broadcast via streaming platforms,” said Anthony Katsur, CEO, IAB Tech Lab. “Delivering a seamless live stream at scale is already a technical challenge. Seamlessly inserting ads during those peak moments of concurrency is even harder. The Live Event Ad Playbook and our new Concurrent Streams API are purpose-built to help the industry meet this moment — ensuring advertisers can act on high-impact opportunities without sacrificing the viewer experience.”
The surge in live streaming is underscored by the fact that streaming services are expected to spend more than $11 billion on sports rights this year. Marquee events like the Super Bowl LX and the 2024 Paris Olympic Games have demonstrated the immense potential of live sports for advertisers seeking mass reach.
To support this evolution, IAB Tech Lab formed the Live Event Ad Serving Working Group, comprising Amazon, FreeWheel, Index Exchange, and NBCUniversal. The group’s efforts are centered on creating a transparent supply chain and equipping advertisers and streaming platforms with scalable, reliable ad delivery standards.
Amazon and NBCUniversal have been at the forefront of live streaming, with NBCUniversal enhancing ad experiences during the Paris Olympics. Alongside Index Exchange, the companies are collaborating with IAB Tech Lab to introduce solutions like the Concurrent Streams API, which provides publishers with real-time viewership insights, enabling faster ad decisions and reducing the risk of missed ad breaks.
“Between over a billion impressions during the 2024 NFL Playoff, and a 90% increase in advertiser participation in the 2024 Olympics, there’s a very clear, booming demand for live sports,” said Mark McKee, General Manager at FreeWheel. “By partnering with IAB Tech Lab, Amazon, NBCUniversal, and Index Exchange, we’re making it easier for advertisers to tap into these high-impact moments with scalable, seamless, and low-latency ad experiences.”
“Live streaming events represent a unique opportunity for advertisers. The premium nature of these environments requires thoughtful technical infrastructure that can adapt in real-time,” said Neal Richter, Director, Amazon DSP. “By establishing common protocols and APIs, we’re collectively moving toward a more reliable set of standards that benefits viewers, content creators, and brands.”
Looking ahead, another proposal under development is an API that projects viewership estimates for upcoming events over a rolling 2–3-week window. This would help publishers anticipate traffic surges while enabling advertisers to optimize budgets, deals, and campaign strategies.
“NBCUniversal has been a leader in live streaming for several years, paving the way for advertisers to reap the benefits of tentpole live event programming across news, sports, and entertainment,” said Ryan McConville, EVP, Chief Product Officer, Advertising Platforms & Operations, NBCUniversal. “With our extensive work in live event advertising, we have unique insight and expertise, and believe that the industry at large will benefit from the standards the IAB has put forward.”
“The high degree of concurrency and unpredictability in live TV streams is both a challenge and a tremendous opportunity for the programmatic ecosystem,” said Catherine Cho, Lead Product Manager, Index Exchange. “The goal of this effort is to tame the chaos with standards and make every streaming impression opportunity biddable and addressable by buyers.”
With these proposed standards, IAB Tech Lab and its partners aim to deliver a clear framework for premium, scalable, and seamless live event advertising.
IAB Tech Lab invites publishers, advertisers, developers, and technology partners to review the proposed guidelines at: https://iabtechlab.com/standards/leap/
