Display & Video 360 API adds YouTube and Demand Gen asset management

The Display & Video 360 API received its October 2025 update on Monday, October 27, 2025, introducing several capabilities focused on YouTube and Demand Gen advertising workflows. The update adds programmatic asset management, expands ad policy visibility, and brings support for two new Structured Data File versions.

Trevor Mulchay, Display & Video 360 API Team, announced the changes through the Google Ads Developer Blog. The update centers on four primary additions to the API's functionality, marking continued expansion of programmatic controls for Google's visual advertising surfaces.

Asset creation and retrieval functionality

The update enables developers to create and retrieve assets used specifically in YouTube and Demand Gen advertisements through the API. This capability addresses a workflow gap that previously required manual asset management through the Display & Video 360 interface for these campaign types.

Assets in the Display & Video 360 context refer to creative elements including images and videos that form the building blocks of advertisements. YouTube and Demand Gen campaigns both require high-quality visual content, with Demand Gen campaigns supporting multiple image formats and video specifications across landscape, square, and portrait orientations.

The new asset management endpoints allow programmatic upload and retrieval of these creative elements. Developers can now integrate asset operations into automated campaign workflows, eliminating manual file uploads for YouTube video and Demand Gen image assets.

According to the REST Resource documentation for advertisers.adAssets, the API provides methods including bulkCreate, create, get, list, and upload. The adAssets resource supports two AdAssetType values: AD_ASSET_TYPE_IMAGE for YouTube and Demand Gen images, and AD_ASSET_TYPE_YOUTUBE_VIDEO for YouTube video content.

YouTube video assets require a youtubeVideoId parameter containing the 11-character string used in YouTube video URLs. This integration connects Display & Video 360 campaign management directly with YouTube's video library, enabling programmatic association of existing YouTube content with advertising campaigns.

Demand Gen AdGroupAd resource access

Support for retrieving Demand Gen AdGroupAd resources extends the API's coverage of Demand Gen campaign components. AdGroupAd resources represent individual advertisements within ad groups, containing the specific creative configurations and asset combinations that appear to users.

The retrieval capability allows developers to programmatically access existing Demand Gen ad configurations. This functionality supports audit workflows, reporting systems, and automated optimization processes that require visibility into current ad settings.

Demand Gen campaigns launched in Display & Video 360 in October 2024, bringing multi-format creative storytelling capabilities to the platform. The campaigns reach up to 3 billion monthly users across YouTube, Discover, and Gmail. The new API support for AdGroupAd retrieval brings programmatic parity with capabilities available through the platform interface.

AdGroupAd resources include information about creative assets, targeting settings, and performance metrics. Programmatic access to these resources enables integration with external reporting systems and custom dashboards that aggregate campaign data across multiple platforms.

Policy review and appeal mechanisms

A new adPolicy field in AdGroupAd resources exposes policy reviews and appeal options for YouTube and Demand Gen advertisements. This addition brings previously interface-only policy information into the programmatic API, enabling automated monitoring of ad approval status.

Advertising policies govern what content can appear across Google's properties. Advertisements undergo automated and manual review processes to ensure compliance with these policies. The policy review system evaluates factors including prohibited content, restricted categories, editorial standards, and technical requirements.

The adPolicy field provides structured data about policy decisions affecting specific advertisements. This includes information about policy violations, available appeal options, and approval status. Developers can now build automated systems that monitor policy status and flag advertisements requiring attention or remediation.

Policy compliance monitoring represents a significant operational concern for large-scale advertisers managing thousands of advertisements. Automated policy status checking reduces manual oversight requirements and enables faster response to policy issues that might prevent advertisements from serving.

The appeal option visibility allows developers to integrate appeal workflows directly into campaign management tools. When advertisements face policy restrictions, authorized users can programmatically initiate appeals without switching to the Display & Video 360 interface.

Structured Data File version support

The update introduces support for Structured Data Files versions v9.1 and v9.2. Structured Data Files provide comma-separated values format for bulk retrieval and management of Display & Video 360 resources.

SDF v9.1 became generally available on September 17, 2025, introducing configuration changes for Demand Gen campaigns. The version added resource-level targeting configuration options for Demand Gen line items, enabling bulk configuration of targeting parameters through file uploads.

Version 9.1 removed several deprecated columns including the Bid Multipliers column from line items and the Measure DAR and Measure DAR Channel columns from insertion orders. These removals reflect platform evolution toward automated bid optimization and updated measurement methodologies.

SDF v9.2 expands upon the capabilities introduced in v9.1, though specific feature additions were not detailed in the October 2025 announcement. The structured data file system supports both standard format files used for creating and updating resources, and QA format files designed for review purposes.

QA format files use display names instead of numeric IDs, making campaign configurations more readable for human review. The format supports Line Item and YouTube Ad Group file types, enabling campaign managers to audit settings without decoding resource identifiers.

SDF files follow strict formatting rules. The first row always contains column names as headers. Non-missing string values appear in quotation marks except in the header row. Missing values remain blank. List-type data uses semicolons as separators with trailing semicolons after the last item.

For list-of-lists structures, each sublist appears in parentheses with semicolons separating sublists and a trailing semicolon following the final list. This standardized formatting enables consistent parsing across automated systems that process bulk campaign data.

Implementation requirements

The Display & Video 360 API release notes provide comprehensive documentation of all changes included in the October 2025 update. Developers must update client libraries to the latest version before accessing the new features to ensure compatibility with updated API endpoints and data structures.

Google recommends updating client libraries through standard package management systems. The Display & Video 360 API provides client libraries for multiple programming languages including Java, Python, PHP, .NET, and Ruby. Each library receives updates synchronized with API releases to maintain feature parity.

Authentication requirements remain consistent with existing Display & Video 360 API implementations. Developers need Google Accounts with appropriate Display & Video 360 permissions, Google API Console projects with the Display & Video 360 API enabled, and OAuth 2.0 client credentials.

The API operates through the service endpoint https://displayvideo.googleapis.com using standard REST principles. Requests require proper authentication headers and follow conventional HTTP methods for different operations. GET requests retrieve resources, POST requests create new resources, PATCH requests update existing resources, and DELETE requests remove resources.

For developers encountering implementation challenges, Google maintains a Display & Video 360 API Technical support contact form providing access to specialized assistance. This support channel addresses technical questions about API functionality, troubleshooting integration issues, and guidance on best practices for API implementation.

Implications for programmatic workflows

The October 2025 update addresses specific workflow requirements for agencies and advertisers managing YouTube and Demand Gen campaigns at scale. Asset management capabilities enable creative teams to integrate their digital asset management systems directly with Display & Video 360, automating asset uploads and associations.

Marketing technology platforms can now build more comprehensive integrations that handle the complete lifecycle of YouTube and Demand Gen advertisements. This includes creative development, asset upload, campaign configuration, launch, monitoring, and optimization within unified interfaces that abstract underlying platform complexity.

Policy monitoring automation reduces operational overhead for compliance teams overseeing large advertisement portfolios. Automated systems can continuously check policy status across thousands of advertisements and generate alerts when policy actions require human review or appeal submissions.

The Demand Gen AdGroupAd retrieval capability supports sophisticated reporting implementations that aggregate performance data from multiple sources. Advertisers can build custom dashboards combining Display & Video 360 data with information from other platforms, creating unified views of cross-channel campaign performance.

Structured Data File version support enables bulk operations teams to manage campaign configurations using the latest platform features. Organizations using SDF workflows can now configure Demand Gen targeting options programmatically rather than through individual line item edits in the interface.

For enterprise advertisers operating in multiple markets, the asset management capabilities support centralized creative operations. Creative teams can develop assets once and distribute them programmatically across campaigns in different regions, maintaining brand consistency while enabling local market customization.

The API updates arrive as Display & Video 360 continues expanding its Demand Gen capabilities. The platform introduced granular inventory source controls for Demand Gen line items in March 2025, giving advertisers precise control over ad placement across YouTube, Gmail, Discover, and the Google Display Network.

YouTube remains central to Demand Gen's value proposition. The platform averages over 50 billion daily views on Shorts alone, providing substantial reach for video advertisements. YouTube follow-on views optimization, announced in June 2025, enables advertisers to specifically target users likely to watch additional videos after seeing initial advertisements.

The technical infrastructure supporting these capabilities draws from Google's broader advertising technology investments. Display & Video 360 API v4 reached general availability on March 27, 2025, establishing the stable foundation for subsequent feature additions like the October 2025 update.

Version 3 of the API will sunset on October 7, 2025, requiring organizations currently using v3 to migrate to v4. The migration ensures access to new features and maintains support as Google phases out older API versions following standard lifecycle management practices.

Client library updates deliver new functionality while maintaining backward compatibility for existing integrations. Developers can adopt new features incrementally without requiring comprehensive application rewrites. This approach reduces migration friction and enables gradual feature adoption aligned with organizational priorities.

The October 2025 update represents continued iteration on Display & Video 360's programmatic capabilities. Google has consistently expanded API functionality throughout 2025, with July updates introducing campaign targeting paritybetween API versions and enhanced inventory controls for YouTube & Partners line items.

Technical architecture considerations

Asset management through the API introduces new dependencies between Display & Video 360 and external systems. Organizations must ensure their creative management workflows accommodate the API's asset format requirements and size limitations. YouTube video assets require pre-existing YouTube video IDs, necessitating coordination between video hosting and campaign management systems.

Image assets for Demand Gen campaigns must meet specific technical specifications. The platform accepts JPG, PNG, and static GIF formats with maximum file sizes of 5120KB. Images require minimum dimensions of 600x314 pixels for landscape orientation, 300x300 pixels for square, and 240x300 pixels for portrait formats.

Video specifications for YouTube advertisements include MP4 format with H.264 compression, maximum file sizes of 256GB or 12 hours duration, and recommended minimum resolution of 720p. Videos can be as short as 6 seconds, with maximum length varying by specific ad format.

The API's policy field structure provides standardized data formats for automated processing. Systems can parse policy responses to determine approval status, identify specific policy violations, and present appropriate remediation options to campaign managers or automated optimization systems.

Structured Data File operations require careful attention to file format specifications. Systems generating SDF files must follow precise formatting rules to ensure successful parsing by Display & Video 360's upload processors. Errors in file structure can result in failed uploads and require manual correction.

Version management for SDF files becomes increasingly important as Google deprecates older versions. The platform ended support for SDF v6 on April 30, 2025, requiring organizations to migrate bulk operations to v7 or later. Versions 7.1, 8, and 8.1 face deprecation in March 2026, driving continued migration toward v9.x versions.

Organizations maintaining custom integrations must monitor deprecation schedules and plan migrations accordingly. The Display & Video 360 API release notes document deprecation timelines, providing advance notice for features and versions approaching end-of-life status.

Market context and competitive positioning

The Display & Video 360 enhancements occur within a broader competitive landscape where programmatic advertising platforms compete on automation capabilities and cross-channel reach. Google positions Demand Gen as a distinct offering from both Search and Performance Max campaigns, emphasizing visual storytelling on engaging surfaces.

Performance Max campaigns optimize across all Google channels and surfaces, while Demand Gen specifically targets YouTube, Discover, and Gmail with multi-format creative content. The focused approach enables specialized optimization for visual engagement rather than broad performance optimization across diverse inventory types.

Search campaigns remain focused on intent-driven queries, capturing users actively seeking products or information. Demand Gen campaigns target users in discovery and entertainment contexts, building awareness and consideration before purchase intent manifests in search behavior.

The programmatic capabilities introduced in the October 2025 update enable marketing technology providers to build more sophisticated tools that abstract platform complexity. Advertisers can manage cross-channel campaigns through unified interfaces that translate high-level strategies into platform-specific implementations.

For agencies managing multiple client accounts, the API improvements support scaled operations across diverse advertiser portfolios. Automated asset management and policy monitoring reduce manual oversight requirements, enabling account teams to focus on strategic planning and creative development rather than operational tasks.

Small and medium-sized businesses benefit from ecosystem tools built on the API. Marketing technology platforms can offer Display & Video 360 capabilities to smaller advertisers who might not maintain direct relationships with Google's enterprise sales teams, democratizing access to programmatic video advertising.

Timeline

• October 27, 2025: Google announces October 2025 update to Display & Video 360 API introducing asset management, AdGroupAd retrieval, policy fields, and SDF v9.1/v9.2 support
• September 17, 2025: Display & Video 360 releases Structured Data Files v9.1 with Demand Gen configuration changes and resource-level targeting options
• August 22, 2025: Google implements mandatory EU political advertising declarations in Display & Video 360 API and Structured Data Files
• August 12, 2024: Google releases Structured Data Files QA format to general availability for Display & Video 360 platform
• July 31, 2025: Google updates Display & Video 360 API with campaign targeting parity between API versions and enhanced inventory controls
• June 17, 2025: YouTube follow-on views optimization launches in Demand Gen campaigns enabling audience engagement targeting
• June 4, 2024: Display & Video 360 announces SDF v7.1 general availability and open beta for QA format
• April 19, 2025: Google phases out YouTube Video Action campaigns in favor of Demand Gen with March 2025 deadline for new campaign creation
• March 27, 2025: Display & Video 360 API v4 reaches general availability establishing stable foundation for new features
• March 9, 2025: Display & Video 360 introduces granular inventory source controls for Demand Gen line items at ad group level
• November 1, 2024: Demand Gen integration launches in Display & Video 360 providing multi-format ads and 3 billion user reach
• September 18, 2025: Display & Video 360 introduces natural language search enabling AI-powered campaign discovery through conversational queries

Summary

Who: Google's Display & Video 360 API Team, led by Trevor Mulchay, announced the update affecting developers, advertisers, agencies, and marketing technology platforms building programmatic integrations with Display & Video 360.

What: The October 2025 update to the Display & Video 360 API introduces four primary capabilities: asset creation and retrieval for YouTube and Demand Gen ads, support for retrieving Demand Gen AdGroupAd resources, a new adPolicy field exposing policy reviews and appeal options, and support for Structured Data Files versions v9.1 and v9.2.

When: The announcement occurred on Monday, October 27, 2025, with features immediately available to developers who update their client libraries to the latest version.

Where: The updates apply to the Display & Video 360 API accessible through the https://displayvideo.googleapis.com endpoint, affecting programmatic workflows for campaigns serving across YouTube, Discover, Gmail, and the Google Display Network.

Why: The update addresses workflow gaps in programmatic management of YouTube and Demand Gen campaigns, enabling automated asset management, policy monitoring, and bulk operations using the latest platform features. The changes reduce manual operational requirements for large-scale advertisers and enable marketing technology platforms to build more comprehensive integrations with Display & Video 360.