WFA welcomes the global expansion of the Better Ads Standards

The Coalition for Better Ads (CBA) announced on 9 January that it will expand the Better Ads Standards for desktop and mobile web to all countries and regions worldwide to improve the online ad experience for consumers.

The following types of desktop ad experiences fall beneath the initial Better Ads Standards: pop-up ads, auto-play video ads with sound, prestitial ads with countdown and large sticky ads. For the mobile web environment, the following types of ad experiences fell beneath the Better Ads Standard: pop-up ads, prestitial ads, ads with density greater than 30%, flashing animated ads, auto-play video ads with sound, poststitial ads with countdown, full-screen scrollover ads, and large sticky ads.

Commenting on CBA’s decision, WFA CEO Stephan Loerke said:

“Consumers worldwide have sent a clear message to the online ad industry about the ad formats that disrupt their experience online. Successful brands will respond to consumers by taking steps to avoid these ad experiences in their marketing plans.”

The ad experiences in the Standards are based on the Coalition’s research, which has involved more than 66,000 consumers to date in countries representing 70% of global online advertising spending. The research found strong alignment of consumer preferences across countries and regions for the most- and least-preferred online ad experiences, supporting the adoption of the same Better Ads Standards for desktop and mobile web globally. The Better Ads Standards identify the ad experiences that fall beneath a threshold of consumer acceptability and are most likely to drive consumers to install ad blockers.

For more information, visit www.betterads.org