Verizon Media DSP now offers Integral Ad Science (IAS) contextual targeting and contextual avoidance capabilities across programmatic ad buys.

Greg MacDonald, VP of marketplace partnerships at Verizon Media, believes deepening the DSP’s relationship with IAS to offer contextual avoidance and targeting segments gives advertisers more flexibility and transparency across buys consisting of multiple channels.

The news, announced Monday, gives advertisers access to IAS pre-bid contextual targeting segments available directly in the Verizon Media DSP. The offering provides a curated and extensive list of more than 100 contextual-targeting segments that advertisers can use to target content and optimize programmatic campaigns on a pre-bid basis.

Advertisers have only used technology to avoid content areas for brand-safety concerns, but the companies say Verizon is the first to give advertisers the opportunity to target towards content that aligns with their campaigns and is cohesive for consumers. 

Marketers no longer need to choose between the scale of their campaigns and having the most suitable contextual adjacencies for their campaign messages.

IAS is working with additional DSPs to offer both contextual avoidance and targeting capabilities.

Earlier this month, IAS rebranded its MRC accredited metric Qualified Ads to Quality Impressions. The company said the name change represents their proprietary set of metrics that helps ensure media quality transparency.

Qualifying as a Quality Impression, an ad unit must be viewable, by a real person, in a brand safe and suitable environment – all within the campaign’s correct geographical parameters.