Viant integrates with Wurl for scene-level CTV targeting

Viant Technology Inc. announced on August 19, 2025, a strategic integration with Wurl to become the first demand-side platform delivering scene-level contextual intelligence across Connected Television. This partnership combines Viant's demand-side platform capabilities with Wurl's BrandDiscovery technology and streaming signals to enable precise content alignment in real-time.

The integration leverages IRIS.TV's IRIS_ID technology, enriched with Wurl BrandDiscovery's proprietary scene identification capabilities. According to the announcement, this allows advertisers to align messaging with on-screen context in real-time, driving stronger engagement and outcomes.

Viant's open Real Time Bidding integration with Wurl unlocks premium Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV inventory from top publishers. The partnership marks the first time Wurl's BrandDiscovery-enabled supply becomes available via direct oRTB in a DSP, aligning with Viant's supply path optimization initiatives by streamlining access to premium inventory.

The integration enables advertisers using the Viant DSP to target and activate across scene-level emotional and contextual categories. Wurl's proprietary BrandDiscovery segments classify each scene's emotional tone and thematic context, assigning IRIS_IDs at the scene level. With every Wurl impression IRIS-enabled, advertisers gain new precision levels, aligning creative with narrative moments that drive stronger engagement and results.

Tom Wolfe, SVP of Business Development at Viant, described the technology advancement: "As the first DSP to offer scene-level targeting and measurement capabilities, we are powering a new generation of privacy-safe, contextually relevant advertising that benefits the entire ecosystem."

This contextual intelligence addresses persistent challenges including fragmented targeting, limited measurement and lack of content transparency. Through its integration with IRIS.TV, Wurl's proprietary BrandDiscovery segments are now assigned IRIS_IDs at the scene level, making these signals fully actionable in the Viant DSP via the company's IRIS-enabled Content Report and Pre-bid Targeting solution.

Technical implementation details

Viant's integration with Wurl operates through several key technical components. BrandDiscovery segments classify each scene's emotional tone and thematic context, assigning IRIS_IDs at the scene level. These signals become fully actionable in the Viant DSP via the company's IRIS-enabled Content Report and Pre-bid Targeting solution.

The IRIS-enabled Content Report provides advertisers real-time insights into how their ads perform across various contextual and emotional content categories. This capability equips advertisers with precise, actionable campaign intelligence. For the first time, buyers can instantly compare KPIs such as conversion and video-completion rates to identify which categories and placements drive superior outcomes.

Pre-Bid Targeting functionality enables advertisers to turn these insights into action. High-performing contextual and emotional categories surfaced by the report can be instantly applied as video-level targets within the Viant DSP, improving relevance and performance in CTV campaigns.

By combining Wurl's supply with Viant's Household ID and identity graph, which provides 95% coverage of U.S. adults 18+, advertisers achieve greater reach, relevance, and efficiency in Connected Television's fastest-growing digital advertising channel.

Performance data and market context

Advertisers using the Viant DSP can now target and activate across scene-level emotional and contextual categories, access Wurl's premium FAST inventory programmatically via oRTB, discover top-performing scenes through the IRIS-enabled Content Report, and measure and optimize performance with Viant's Advanced Reporting tools.

Eye-tracking research indicates viewers are 4X more likely to tune out ads not relevant to the content they are watching. Contextual CTV targeting has been proven to keep viewers engaged by reaching them when they are in the right mindset. Recent data from Upwave highlights the significant efficiency and effectiveness of IRIS-enabled contextual targeting in CTV.

Campaigns using IRIS-enabled data demonstrated a 2x lift in awareness, a 3x lift in ad recall, and a remarkable 5x lift in favorability compared to standard Upwave CTV benchmarks. This data underscores the power of contextual alignment in driving deep viewer engagement and measurable outcomes.

Ria Madrid, VP of Advertising Partnerships at Wurl, emphasized the partnership's value proposition: "With BrandDiscovery and IRIS IDs enabled across the Wurl footprint and fully integrated into Viant's DSP, a biddable contextual solution is now activated at unbelievable scale."

Industry implications for programmatic advertising

The announcement occurs amid broader industry shifts toward contextual advertising solutions. Connected TV's share of media budgets is projected to double from 14% in 2023 to 28% in 2025, with 72% of marketers planning to increase programmatic advertising investment in 2025.

This growth coincides with mounting challenges around signal loss in a cookieless and privacy-first advertising landscape. Traditional demographic targeting relies on user identification and behavioral data, which face increasing restrictions due to privacy regulations.

Scene-level targeting represents a significant advancement in contextual advertising technology. The approach enables advertisers to align campaigns with specific content moments rather than traditional demographic or behavioral targeting methods. This implementation addresses several technical challenges within CTV advertising, particularly as the industry seeks targeting methods that do not rely on individual user tracking.

The integration also reflects broader consolidation trends within the advertising technology sector. Major platforms increasingly seek comprehensive technology solutions rather than managing multiple point solutions. Viant's integration with Wurl's scene-level capabilities provides unified access to premium CTV inventory with enhanced targeting precision.

Previous product developments

Viant's announcement follows several recent product launches that establish the foundation for this advanced targeting capability. On July 24, 2025, Viant announced the launch of IRIS-enabled Content Report and Pre-Bid Targeting within the Viant Demand-Side Platform.

This strategic integration delivered on Viant's vision to reduce friction and enhance buyer experiences by seamlessly unifying holistic measurement and targeting directly within the DSP. The IRIS-enabled Content Report offered advertisers real-time insights into how their ads perform across various contextual and emotional content categories.

Earlier in 2025, on January 28, Viant enhanced its identity offering through a partnership with TransUnion. This collaboration enabled Viant to match its Household ID to 95% of U.S. adults, leveraging comprehensive and trusted data. Chris Vanderhook, COO and Co-Founder at Viant, positioned this as providing "an unprecedented level of scale" while ensuring advertisers can "maintain precision and performance in a privacy-forward world."

The Household ID technology provides interoperability with various IDs, giving advertisers precise targeting and results across all channels, including CTV. Viant's native identity solution enables faster campaign measurement and optimization compared to non-native alternatives, with seamless integration across leading IDs and platforms.

Market analysis and competitive landscape

The Connected Television advertising ecosystem continues experiencing rapid expansion across global markets. CTV advertisements achieve completion rates of approximately 95%, substantially outperforming traditional digital video formats. Industry projections indicate CTV ad spending will reach $33.35 billion in 2025.

The introduction of scene-level targeting capabilities through AI analysis potentially enables more sophisticated campaign optimization within this growing channel. Contextual targeting emerges as the primary solution for 41% of marketers, slightly outpacing first-party data strategies at 40%.

Publishers benefit from improved yield optimization through unified inventory management capabilities. The partnership addresses fundamental challenges in CTV advertising, including inventory fragmentation across multiple platforms, inconsistent measurement standards, and complex relationship management with diverse media owners.

Performance data over 75 million videos from leading streaming platforms are IRIS-enabled, allowing advertisers to choose from various content categories provided by IRIS.TV's content data marketplace partners including 4D, Captify, GumGum, KERV.ai, Mobian, Pixability, Reticle, Sightly, Silverpush, SpotRunner and more.

Field Garthwaite, CEO of IRIS.TV, described the collaboration's significance: "By combining IRIS-enabled Content Report and Pre-Bid Targeting with Viant's powerful DSP capabilities and leadership in CTV, we're providing advertisers with deeper, actionable insights that drive real-world results."

Wurl operates as a subsidiary of AppLovin Corporation, powering premium Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV inventory through its platform. The company reports 4B+ monthly hours of viewing and 95B+ monthly available CTV impressions across 55+ streamers worldwide. Wurl develops technologies and services that help accelerate the shift to streaming while making content more accessible and brands more impactful on television screens.

Timeline

• January 28, 2025: Viant partners with TransUnion to enhance identity resolution reaching 95% of U.S. adults through TruAudience integration
• July 24, 2025: Viant launches IRIS-enabled Content Report and Pre-Bid Targeting within the Demand-Side Platform
• August 19, 2025: Viant integrates with Wurl to become first DSP offering scene-level contextual intelligence in Connected Television
• Related developments: Magnite partners with Anoki for scene-level targeting and LG Ad Solutions integrates with Viant for enhanced CTV addressability

PPC Land explains

Connected TV (CTV): Internet-enabled television devices that stream digital video content without traditional cable or satellite infrastructure. CTV represents the fastest-growing segment of digital advertising, with budgets projected to double from 14% to 28% of total media spending between 2023 and 2025. The platform enables household-level targeting while maintaining the premium viewing environment associated with television screens.

Demand-Side Platform (DSP): Technology platforms that enable advertisers and agencies to purchase digital advertising inventory across multiple sources through automated bidding processes. DSPs provide centralized campaign management, audience targeting capabilities, and real-time optimization tools. Viant's DSP specializes in Connected TV advertising with integrated identity resolution and contextual targeting features.

IRIS_ID: IRIS.TV's proprietary content identifier that enables scalable advertising solutions for contextual, emotional, and brand-suitability planning, targeting, and measurement across streaming video content. The IRIS_ID creates standardized classification systems that allow advertisers to target specific content moments rather than relying solely on audience demographics.

Scene-level targeting: Advanced contextual advertising technology that analyzes individual scenes within video content to determine emotional tone, thematic context, and brand safety parameters. This approach enables advertisers to align campaigns with specific content moments that match their messaging strategy, resulting in higher engagement rates and improved campaign performance compared to traditional demographic targeting.

BrandDiscovery: Wurl's proprietary technology that classifies streaming content at the scene level, identifying emotional tone and thematic context within individual video segments. BrandDiscovery segments are now assigned IRIS_IDs, making them actionable for programmatic advertising targeting and measurement across Connected TV environments.

Contextual targeting: Advertising placement strategy that selects inventory based on content characteristics rather than user behavior or demographic data. In Connected TV environments, contextual targeting analyzes video content to match advertisements with relevant programming moments, improving viewer engagement while addressing privacy concerns associated with audience-based targeting methods.

Programmatic advertising: Automated technology for buying and selling digital advertising inventory through real-time bidding systems. The approach uses algorithms and data to purchase ad placements across multiple platforms simultaneously, enabling efficient campaign optimization and precise audience targeting at scale across various digital channels including Connected TV.

Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV (FAST): Streaming television model that provides content to viewers at no cost while generating revenue through advertising placements. FAST platforms have emerged as significant inventory sources for Connected TV advertising, offering premium video environments with diverse content libraries and growing audience reach.

Household ID: Viant's patented identity resolution technology that matches advertising signals to household-level identifiers rather than individual users. The system provides 95% coverage of U.S. adults aged 18 and older, enabling precise targeting while maintaining privacy compliance and supporting measurement across cookieless environments.

Real-time bidding (RTB): Automated auction process that enables advertisers to purchase individual advertising impressions as they become available. RTB occurs within milliseconds as content loads, allowing precise audience targeting for each impression opportunity based on available data while enabling dynamic pricing optimization across digital advertising channels.

Summary

Who: Viant Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: DSP), a leader in AI-powered programmatic advertising, partnered with Wurl, the streaming TV subsidiary of AppLovin Corporation.

What: Integration enabling Viant to become the first demand-side platform delivering scene-level contextual intelligence across Connected Television through BrandDiscovery technology and IRIS_ID classification.

When: Announced August 19, 2025, building on previous product launches including IRIS-enabled Content Report in July 2025 and TransUnion partnership in January 2025.

Where: Implementation spans Wurl's premium Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV inventory across 55+ streamers worldwide, with 95B+ monthly available CTV impressions.

Why: Addresses persistent challenges in CTV advertising including fragmented targeting, limited measurement, and lack of content transparency while enabling privacy-safe contextual advertising without relying on individual user tracking.