OpenX integrates S&P Global Mobility's Polk Automotive data for precise targeting

OpenX Technologies announced on August 19, 2025, its integration with S&P Global Mobility's Polk Automotive Solutions portfolio. This marks the first time Polk's measurement capabilities have been brought to the supply side, combining audience precision with supply path efficiency to deliver measurable outcomes for automotive marketers.

The integration targets the substantial US automotive advertising market, which is projected to surpass $31 billion in 2025. Through Polk's advanced analytics solutions, OpenX empowers automotive buyers to measure and optimize campaigns while delivering real-time attribution tied to actual vehicle transactions.

Technical foundation built on decades of data

The partnership leverages Polk's predictive audiences, which differ significantly from traditional solutions relying on sample data or modeled assumptions. These audiences are rooted in more than 30 years of ownership history and are scored and trained against census-level vehicle transactions. Combined with OpenX's people-based identity graph and premium cross-inventory format, this partnership ensures greater targeting accuracy and meaningful campaign results.

Polk's portfolio includes over 2,000 automotive segments built from detailed understanding of auto buyers. The integration provides media buyers with high-fidelity offline matching, insights for campaign optimization during flight, and accurate closed-loop measurement and attribution across connected television, display, and out-of-home campaigns.

OpenXSelect platform enables streamlined operations

The integration operates through OpenXSelect™, OpenX's curation and supply-side targeting platform that makes media buying easier, faster, and more precise across channels. OpenXSelect pairs premium omnichannel inventory with turnkey audience, behavioral, attention, and sustainability data across over 200,000 direct publisher sites and apps.

"Our mission is to deliver the industry's best automotive insights and data that empowers our users to connect more effectively with their customers," says Joe Kyriakoza, VP and General Manager Polk Automotive Solutions at S&P Global Mobility. "Integrating Polk's automotive intelligence into OpenXSelect extends the reach and performance of Polk solutions, giving marketers the insights and scale needed to drive better business outcomes while streamlining campaign setup."

Industry leadership in supply-side curation

OpenX has led curation and supply-side targeting since 2018, when it launched the industry's first and largest independent supply-side identity graph. The company now operates across connected television, native, app, and web inventory, providing unmatched scale for advertisers and publishers.

Brian Chisholm, SVP of Strategic Partnerships at OpenX, describes the integration as "a major milestone in delivering more advanced, higher-performing tools." He notes that supply-side targeting and curation are maturing rapidly, with targeting being a key focus for OpenX. The ability to measure outcomes with Polk delivers significant advertiser value.

S&P Global Mobility's automotive data assets

S&P Global Mobility's Polk Automotive Solutions portfolio encompasses vehicle purchases, parts, service, warranty, and other core data assets that auto brands rely on for decision-making. The division is renowned in the industry for comprehensive and accurate automotive information and market insights.

The Polk Automotive Solutions portfolio includes three main components: Polk Audiences for marketing activation, Polk Signals for measurement and insights, and Polk Data Services to help amplify and augment first-party data assets. The company works closely with automotive OEMs, dealers, and affiliates to deliver industry-leading products built on the foundation of vehicle transactions across the United States.

Platform capabilities and market positioning

OpenX operates as an independent omnichannel supply-side platform and global leader in supply-side curation, transparency, and sustainability. Through its 100% cloud-based tech stack, OpenX powers advertising across connected television, app, mobile web, and desktop, enabling publishers to deliver marketers improved performance and dynamic future-proofed solutions.

With a 17-year track record of programmatic innovation, OpenX serves as a direct and trusted partner of the world's largest publishers, working with more than 200,000 premium publisher domains and over 100,000 advertisers. The company holds the distinction of being the first adtech company certified as CarbonNeutral™ and third-party verified for achieving its Science Based Targets initiative Net-Zero targets.

Strategic importance for automotive marketing

This integration represents a significant development for the automotive marketing sector, particularly as the industry faces changing consumer behaviors and evolving digital advertising landscapes. The partnership provides automotive marketers with unprecedented access to verified transaction data, enabling more precise targeting and measurement capabilities.

The collaboration extends beyond traditional demographic targeting, incorporating behavioral insights and purchase history to create more effective advertising strategies. Media buyers can now access segments based on price class, fuel type, make, model, and vehicle segment, enabling highly specific targeting based on actual automotive ownership patterns.

Market implications and competitive landscape

The announcement occurs within a broader context of supply-side platform innovation and consolidation. PPC Land has extensively documented how companies like OpenX are advancing curation capabilities to provide more sophisticated targeting and measurement tools for advertisers.

The automotive advertising sector particularly benefits from these advances, as automotive purchases represent high-value, considered decisions where precise targeting and measurement prove especially valuable. The integration of verified transaction data with programmatic advertising capabilities represents a significant step forward in advertising technology for this vertical.

Supply-side platforms continue evolving to provide more comprehensive solutions as privacy regulations reshape targeting capabilities. OpenX has been at the forefront of these developments, developing cookieless targeting solutions and privacy-focused advertising technologies to address industry challenges.

Technical implementation details

The direct integration provides actionable insights throughout the automotive purchase lifecycle, empowering buyers to optimize campaigns throughout the funnel. The system processes real-time attribution data tied to actual vehicle transactions, providing measurable outcomes that traditional advertising approaches cannot deliver.

OpenX's proprietary identity graph spans more than 237 million US users and 150 million connected television devices. This infrastructure enables the scaled activation of Polk's automotive segments across multiple channels and devices, ensuring consistent targeting and measurement across the entire advertising ecosystem.

The platform supports multiple identification methodologies, including cookies, mobile advertising IDs, authenticated IDs, and IP addresses. This comprehensive approach ensures robust targeting capabilities even as the industry transitions away from third-party cookies.

Data partnership expansion trends

The OpenX-Polk integration reflects broader industry trends toward specialized data partnerships that provide vertical-specific targeting capabilities. This approach enables supply-side platforms to offer more sophisticated solutions while maintaining the scale and efficiency that programmatic advertising requires.

Similar partnerships have emerged across other verticals, including retail, travel, and financial services. These collaborations typically combine transactional data with programmatic advertising capabilities to deliver enhanced targeting precision and measurement accuracy.

The automotive sector has proven particularly receptive to these data-driven approaches, given the high value of automotive purchases and the extended consideration periods that characterize automotive buying behaviors. Automotive marketers require sophisticated attribution models to track the complex customer journey from initial awareness to final purchase.

Timeline

• 2018: OpenX launches industry's first supply-side identity graph, establishing leadership in supply-side curation
• February 2022: S&P Global acquires R.L. Polk & Co., expanding automotive data capabilities
• February 4, 2024: OpenX unveils Cookieless Deal Library for post-cookie advertising landscape
• July 16, 2025: OpenX announces OpenXSelect platform general availability
• August 19, 2025: OpenX integrates S&P Global Mobility's Polk Automotive Solutions portfolio
• August 2025: OpenX continues legal action against Google following antitrust ruling

Summary

Who: OpenX Technologies, a leading omnichannel supply-side platform, and S&P Global Mobility's Polk Automotive Solutions division.

What: Direct integration bringing Polk's measurement capabilities to the supply side for the first time, combining audience precision with supply path efficiency for automotive marketers.

When: The integration was announced on August 19, 2025, building upon OpenX's seven-year leadership in supply-side curation since 2018.

Where: The integration operates across OpenX's global network of over 200,000 premium publisher domains, spanning connected television, display, and out-of-home advertising channels.

Why: To address the $31 billion US automotive advertising market with enhanced targeting precision and real-time attribution tied to actual vehicle transactions, providing measurable outcomes for automotive marketers in an increasingly complex digital advertising landscape.

Key terminology and concepts

Supply-side platform (SSP): A technology platform that enables publishers to sell their advertising inventory programmatically to advertisers. Supply-side platforms automate the selling process by connecting publishers with multiple ad exchanges and demand-side platforms simultaneously. OpenX operates as an independent omnichannel SSP, providing publishers with tools to optimize revenue while maintaining control over their inventory quality and pricing strategies.

Automotive marketing: The specialized field of advertising and promotion focused on vehicles, automotive services, and related products. This sector represents a $31 billion market in the US alone, characterized by high-value purchases, extended consideration periods, and complex customer journeys. Automotive marketing requires sophisticated attribution models due to the significant time gap between initial exposure and final purchase decisions.

Targeting: The practice of directing advertisements to specific audience segments based on various criteria such as demographics, behaviors, interests, or purchase history. In programmatic advertising, targeting enables advertisers to reach the most relevant consumers while minimizing wasted impressions. Advanced targeting combines first-party data with third-party insights to create precise audience definitions that improve campaign performance and return on investment.

Integration: The technical process of connecting different software systems or platforms to enable seamless data sharing and functionality. The OpenX-Polk integration represents a direct technical connection that allows Polk's automotive data to be activated within OpenX's supply-side platform. Such integrations eliminate the need for separate contracts or manual data transfers, streamlining operations for advertisers and improving campaign efficiency.

Polk Automotive Solutions: S&P Global Mobility's comprehensive automotive data and analytics portfolio, built from over 30 years of vehicle ownership history and census-level transaction data. Polk provides three main offerings: Polk Audiences for marketing activation, Polk Signals for measurement and insights, and Polk Data Services for data enhancement. The portfolio serves automotive OEMs, dealers, and marketers with industry-leading data assets.

OpenXSelect: OpenX's advanced curation and supply-side targeting platform that enables brands and agencies to control inventory quality and activate targeting at scale. The platform integrates with OpenX's proprietary identity graph spanning 237 million US users and provides access to premium omnichannel inventory with turnkey data capabilities. OpenXSelect reduces campaign setup time by up to 50% while improving targeting precision across multiple channels.

Identity graph: A database that connects various identifiers associated with individual consumers across different devices and touchpoints. OpenX's proprietary identity graph represents the industry's first and largest independent supply-side identity solution, enabling consistent targeting and measurement across cookies, mobile advertising IDs, authenticated IDs, and IP addresses. Identity graphs become increasingly important as the industry transitions away from third-party cookies.

Attribution: The process of determining which marketing touchpoints contributed to a desired outcome, such as a purchase or conversion. Real-time attribution tied to actual vehicle transactions represents a significant advancement in automotive marketing measurement. This capability enables marketers to understand the true impact of their advertising investments and optimize campaigns based on verified business outcomes rather than proxy metrics.

Curation: The practice of selecting and organizing advertising inventory to meet specific quality standards and targeting requirements. Supply-side curation involves packaging premium inventory with relevant data to create more effective advertising opportunities. OpenX has led supply-side curation since 2018, combining direct publisher relationships with sophisticated data activation to deliver superior outcomes for advertisers while supporting the open web ecosystem.

Programmatic advertising: The automated buying and selling of digital advertising inventory through real-time bidding systems. Programmatic technology enables precise targeting, real-time optimization, and efficient scale across multiple channels and formats. The integration of specialized data like Polk's automotive insights into programmatic platforms represents the evolution toward more sophisticated, data-driven advertising approaches that deliver measurable business outcomes.