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Version: v2

Dolby OptiView Ads Introduction

OptiView Ads is a hybrid ad insertion platform for live streams and video-on-demand (VOD) assets: the same channel and the same breaks can be delivered with Server-Guided Ad Insertion (SGAI) or Server-Side Ad Insertion (SSAI). Ads come from creatives on your own CDN, from VAST tags on your ad server, or from Google Ad Manager. On these pages, you'll learn how to get started with OptiView Ads, choose the ad workflow that fits your content, schedule ad breaks, and configure the OptiView Ads SDK.

By logically redistributing responsibilities in the advertisement workflow, OptiView Ads:

  • Creates a seamless viewer experience across platforms.
  • Simplifies the workflow by reducing complexity, which results in easier implementation and lower operational risk.
  • Introduces innovative ad formats, creating more diverse and less intrusive ad opportunities.
  • Maximizes workflow efficiency by reducing prefetching and over-allocation of inventory.
  • Enables more relevant ads through a high degree of personalization.

OptiView Ads models each live stream or VOD asset as a channel. A channel schedules breaks, or detects them from the ad markers in the stream or asset on its origins, and can use reusable templates for consistent ad experiences. It generates a Break Manifest for the OptiView Ads SDK to read and render.

Use caseWhat it is forAd sources
LiveLinear channels and live events: breaks on the live timeline, scheduled, punched, or detected.Static assets, Your ad server (VAST), Google Ad Manager
VODOn-demand assets: pre-roll, mid-rolls at positions in the asset, post-roll, and pause ads.Static assets, Your ad server (VAST), Google Ad Manager
OptiView Ads architectureOptiView Ads architecture

OptiView Ads supports both Dynamic Ad Replacement (DAR) — replacing ad breaks that are already present in your stream, detected through markers — and Dynamic Ad Insertion (DAI) — inserting new ad breaks that you schedule yourself.

OptiView Ads provides integrations with different ad servers for ad decisioning, transcoding, and serving, where Google Ad Manager is one of them.

For an end-to-end walkthrough, see Getting started with OptiView Ads. For the channel model, origins, breaks, and templates, see the Channels concept.

OptiView Ads enables innovative ad formats through the OptiView Ads SDK, providing new ways to monetize content in a less intrusive manner. The out-of-the-box layouts include:

  • Single: Replaces the content with a full-screen advertisement.
  • Double Box: Allows content to continue playing side-by-side with an advertisement and its companion background.
  • L-Shape Ad: Plays the advertisement in the main window alongside a companion backdrop.
  • L-Shape Content: Keeps the content playing in a scaled window alongside an ad backdrop.
  • Overlay: Renders a non-linear advertisement on top of the content, which keeps playing.
OptiView Ads layoutsOptiView Ads layouts

Besides mid-roll breaks on the live timeline or at positions in a VOD asset, breaks can also be triggered by player events: pre-roll (when playback starts), pause (while the viewer is paused), and post-roll (when playback ends) — each with an optional delay.