Index Exchange first SSP to integrate Gracenote contextual intelligence

Index Exchange Inc., one of the world's largest independent supply-side platforms, and Gracenote, the content data business unit of Nielsen, announced on September 16, 2025, the industry's first SSP integration of Gracenote contextual intelligence. The collaboration positions Index Exchange as the first SSP to embed Gracenote's brand safety segments and granular Do-Not-Air controls directly into its platform.

The technical implementation extends Gracenote program metadata and content IDs, previously used by major publishers for search and discovery functionality, into Index's programmatic infrastructure. Publishers can now package streaming supply with rich contextual data while maintaining full control over when and with whom they share contextual information.

According to Catherine Cho, Lead Product Manager for Streaming TV at Index Exchange, the collaboration transforms contextual signals into practical programmatic tools. "By building Gracenote's capabilities directly into our workflow, we're turning show-level data into tools that buyers and publishers can actually put into action," Cho stated.

The integration addresses critical gaps in programmatic streaming television advertising. Traditional programmatic systems lack detailed content context, forcing buyers to make purchasing decisions with limited information about adjacent content. Gracenote-powered segments and DNA lists enable marketers to align advertisements with appropriate shows while avoiding placements that conflict with brand standards.

Technical capabilities expand beyond basic targeting

The partnership delivers program-level delivery reports, providing buyers with transparency into adjacent content and advertisement performance at granular levels. These insights introduce optimization techniques specifically designed for programmatic environments, enhancing confidence in streaming TV spend allocation.

Kanishk Prasad, VP of Product at Gracenote, emphasized the partnership's potential to improve campaign outcomes. "By combining our rich metadata and content IDs with Index's powerful platform, we're enabling smarter, real-time decisions that improve campaign outcomes for brands, elevate premium content and improve CTV as a channel," Prasad stated.

The announcement builds on Gracenote's established position in content intelligence. Gracenote launched contextual CTV ad targeting capabilities in July 2024, partnering with multiple demand-side platforms and supply-side platforms to introduce standardized contextual categories powered by program-level metadata. The previous initiative enabled keyword targeting based on actors, directors, sports types, moods, themes, subjects, and locations across the advertising technology ecosystem.

Industry context reflects streaming advertising maturation

The partnership emerges during significant expansion in programmatic streaming television advertising. Connected TV spending is projected to reach $33.35 billion in 2025, with 72 percent of marketers planning increased programmatic investment. CTV budget allocation is expected to double from 14 percent in 2023 to 28 percent in 2025.

Index Exchange has consistently advanced streaming TV measurement capabilities throughout 2025. The company introduced duration-based reporting on September 12, 2025, addressing fundamental limitations in legacy programmatic metrics that treat all impression opportunities equally regardless of time duration. The new measurement approach acknowledges that 30-second impression opportunities provide significantly more advertiser value than 6-second placements.

StackAdapt reported 71 percent infrastructure improvements through Index Exchange pod bidding implementations in July 2025. The collaboration addressed technical challenges in programmatic streaming environments where ad pods are typically flattened into individual bid opportunities, creating inefficiencies across the supply chain.

The Gracenote integration complements Index Exchange's broader strategic initiatives. The company invested in First Party Capital in July 2025, a venture fund focused on European advertising technology startups addressing programmatic challenges through artificial intelligence applications.

Streaming intelligence addresses measurement gaps

Traditional streaming TV advertising faces significant measurement and transparency challenges. Publishers struggle to communicate content quality and brand safety to programmatic buyers, while advertisers lack visibility into adjacent content that influences campaign performance and brand perception.

The Gracenote integration provides standardized content taxonomy enabling consistent communication between buyers and sellers. Content IDs and metadata create common language for describing programming across different streaming platforms and content categories.

Nielsen's broader measurement initiatives demonstrate industry emphasis on streaming intelligence. The measurement provider implemented enhanced Big Data + Panel methodology on September 2, 2025, combining traditional panel data with large-scale device information from 45 million households and 75 million devices.

Gracenote's position as Nielsen's content data business unit provides access to comprehensive entertainment industry insights. The company launched Video Model Context Protocol Server on September 3, 2025, connecting large language models to Gracenote's entertainment database covering 40 million titles across 260 streaming catalogs.

Market dynamics drive contextual targeting adoption

Privacy-first advertising requirements increase reliance on contextual targeting solutions. Research shows 54 percent of mobile impressions now lack identifier coverage, forcing marketers to adopt new strategies. Contextual targeting emerges as the primary solution for 41 percent of marketers, slightly outpacing first-party data strategies at 40 percent.

The Index Exchange and Gracenote partnership addresses these market shifts by providing content-based targeting alternatives to audience-based approaches. Show-level transparency enables advertisers to make informed placement decisions without relying on traditional user tracking mechanisms.

Connected TV platforms demonstrate increasing openness to programmatic capabilities. Pinterest expanded programmatic access through Index Exchange and Criteo partnerships, with Index Exchange added to Pinterest's ads.txt file on November 28, 2024. Zillow piloted containerized real-time bidding with Index Exchange in August 2025 to balance quality and cost in programmatic advertising.

The collaboration positions Index Exchange and Gracenote at the intersection of streaming content intelligence and programmatic advertising efficiency. Publishers gain enhanced monetization tools while maintaining data control, and buyers receive transparency necessary for confident streaming TV investment decisions.

Timeline

• July 29, 2024: Gracenote introduces contextual CTV ad targeting with industry partnerships
• November 28, 2024: Pinterest adds Index Exchange to ads.txt file for programmatic expansion
• July 1, 2025: StackAdapt partners with Index Exchange achieving 71% infrastructure improvements
• July 14, 2025: Index Exchange invests in First Party Capital as programmatic enters AI-powered phase
• August 6, 2025: Zillow pilots containerized RTB with Index Exchange to improve ad quality
• September 3, 2025: Gracenote launches MCP Server to verify AI responses for TV platforms
• September 12, 2025: Index Exchange advances duration-based metrics for streaming TV measurement
• September 16, 2025: Index Exchange and Gracenote announce first SSP integration of contextual intelligence

Summary

Who: Index Exchange Inc., one of the world's largest independent supply-side platforms, and Gracenote, the content data business unit of Nielsen, with statements from Catherine Cho, Lead Product Manager for Streaming TV at Index Exchange, and Kanishk Prasad, VP of Product at Gracenote.

What: The industry's first SSP integration of Gracenote contextual intelligence, making Index Exchange the first SSP to embed Gracenote's brand safety segments and granular Do-Not-Air controls directly into its platform, enabling show-level targeting, transparency, and post-campaign reporting.

When: The partnership was announced on September 16, 2025, from Toronto, Canada.

Where: The collaboration extends globally through Index Exchange's platform infrastructure, enabling publishers to package streaming supply with rich contextual data and providing buyers with program-level delivery reports across streaming TV environments.

Why: The partnership addresses critical gaps in programmatic streaming TV advertising by transforming contextual signals into practical tools, enabling more confident planning and precise activation across streaming TV while helping build a more contextually aware, transparent, and responsible advertising ecosystem.