Glossary | S | Supply-Side Platforms (SSPs)
What are SSPs?
Supply-side platforms, or SSPs, are a platform for app developers to manage their ad inventory and facilitate their sale. SSPs work similarly to Demand-Side Platforms (DSPs), but on the developer side rather than the advertiser side. DSPs use Real-Time Bidding (RTB) to find the best possible ad placements at the best prices based on anonymized data.
SSPs create a place for all developers to make this data about potential ad impressions available. In an RTB auction, SSPs are the auctioneer, and DSPs are the buyer. SSPs allow developers to control minimum bids on their inventory and limit their inventory availability to certain parties. SSPs can also access multiple DSPs via ad exchanges, which make it easier for them to maximize visibility to all potential buyers.
Thousands of marketers and developers participate in these ongoing transactions, which take a small fraction of a second to fulfill. The result of each of these exchanges is that the optimal outcome is achieved for both parties given the parameters involved — marketers receive the lowest cost possible for optimal ad space while delivering developers the highest cost per thousand impressions (CPM) possible for their inventory.
Read more about Benefits and Best Practices for Supply Side Platform on our blog.