Kadam, auteur chez State of Digital Publishing

Publishers working with several ad networks often face the same problem: the CPM shown in a dashboard does not necessarily tell them which source is actually making the most money. A network may look stronger on paper while monetizing only part of the traffic it receives. Another may show a lower CPM but accept a much larger share. Comparing the two by dashboard rates alone can therefore lead to the wrong traffic allocation. Kadam Smart Mediation, a new monetization tool for publishers, is built around a different approach. Instead of looking only at reported CPMs, it compares how much revenue each connected source actually generates and automatically adjusts traffic distribution based on real performance. The goal is straightforward: help publishers increase revenue from the traffic they already have, without replacing their existing ad networks or paying a mediation fee. Kadam is also backing the launch with a revenue guarantee: publishers can get at least 10% more revenue in 14 days compared with their current mediation setup, if they connect by October 5. The guarantee includes a Kadam top-up to deliver the full +10% result. The problem with comparing CPM alone CPM is one of the most visible metrics in publisher dashboards, but it does not always reflect the actual revenue generated from the traffic sent to a network. Take a simple example. A network reports a CPM of $2.10, but accepts only 60% of the impressions sent to it. From 1,000 impressions sent, that accepted share generates $1.26 in revenue. The dashboard can still show a CPM of $2.10, because that figure is calculated only on the impressions the network accepted and monetized. But from the publisher’s perspective, the effective revenue from the full 1,000 impressions sent is $1.26. That is the difference Kadam Smart Mediation is designed to make visible. Instead of comparing only the CPM reported by each network, it looks at the actual revenue generated from the total traffic sent to that source. Kadam Smart Mediation instead evaluates the revenue generated from the full amount of traffic sent. This creates a common basis for comparing networks and makes it easier to identify which source is really performing better. Traffic is not one average Another limitation of broad CPM comparisons is that the same source may perform very differently across different segments of publisher’s traffic. A network that works well for one GEO may be less competitive for another. Performance can also vary by proxy, operating system or user uniquenes.. Kadam Smart Mediation breaks traffic down into segments and compares monetization performance at that level. This means there does not need to be one “best” network for the whole site. One source may win a certain segment, another may generate more revenue elsewhere, while Kadam itself may be the strongest option for a specific group of users. As performance changes, the system can automatically adjust how traffic is distributed. For publishers, this replaces a large part of the manual process of comparing reports, changing weights and continuously rebalancing traffic between monetization partners. Existing ad networks remain part of the setup Smart Mediation is not designed to force publishers to replace the networks they already use. Existing partners can remain connected, and their commercial terms do not need to change. Those networks also continue paying publishers directly. Kadam works as an additional optimization layer on top of the current monetization setup. Publishers connect their sources through API, and Smart Mediation uses their performance data to determine how traffic should be allocated. The tool can also be introduced gradually. A publisher can start with one site rather than moving an entire portfolio at once. New sources first receive a test share of traffic so enough data can be collected. From there, allocation is adjusted according to performance. Kadam adds another source of demand Smart Mediation does more than compare a publisher’s existing networks. It also brings Kadam’s own advertising demand into the competition, including retargeting and direct advertiser demand. This matters because some users can be significantly more valuable to particular advertisers than the average visitor. For example, Kadam data shows that around 1.2% of popunder clicks and 0.5% of banner impressions can be worth substantially more to retargeting advertisers, reaching 6–20 times the average rate for the relevant traffic. That demand is available through Kadam and can be accessed automatically through Smart Mediation. The logic remains performance-based: Kadam receives a traffic segment only when its demand can generate more revenue than the other connected sources. If another network performs better, that network continues receiving the traffic. Why the mediation fee is 0% Kadam does not charge publishers a separate fee for using Smart Mediation. Revenue generated by existing ad networks continues to go directly to the publisher. Kadam earns from its own advertisers, not from you. The more quality traffic Kadam sees, the more advertisers it can attract. More advertisers mean more competition for each traffic segment, which leads to higher bids and potentially higher prices for your traffic. So the model works for both sides: Kadam grows its advertiser demand, while publishers benefit from stronger competition for their inventory. One comparison standard for different networks Working with multiple ad networks often means working with multiple reporting systems. Different platforms may use different time zones, GEO definitions, impression-counting logic or reporting methodologies. That makes direct comparison difficult even before differences in traffic acceptance are taken into account. Smart Mediation normalizes this data and compares sources using a common metric: actual revenue per 1,000 impressions sent. The important distinction is “sent,” not simply “counted” or “accepted.” Traffic that a network did not monetize still matters when calculating the real return generated by that source. This gives publishers a more consistent way to assess performance across their entire monetization stack. Less manual work as rates change Monetization performance is rarely static. Advertiser demand changes, rates move, and the value of different audience segments can change throughout the day. A source that was the strongest option yesterday may not remain the best one tomorrow. Without automated mediation, reacting to these changes means repeatedly checking dashboards and manually adjusting traffic distribution. Smart Mediation is designed to handle that process automatically. When one source starts generating more revenue for a particular segment, it can receive a larger share. When its performance drops relative to competitors, allocation can move elsewhere. The result is a setup that responds to actual revenue rather than relying on fixed traffic shares or periodic manual optimization. A 10% revenue guarantee for the launch To support the launch of Smart Mediation, Kadam is offering publishers a concrete performance guarantee for those who connect by October 5. Publishers can get at least 10% more revenue in 14 days compared with their current mediation setup. The guarantee is structured around the final result: Kadam can top up the difference so the publisher reaches the promised +10% uplift. This gives publishers a way to test the new mediation model against the setup they already use, while comparing the result on their own traffic. Full conditions of the offer are available on the Kadam Smart Mediation page. More competition around the same traffic The main idea behind Kadam Smart Mediation is not to replace a publisher’s monetization stack, but to make it work more efficiently. Existing networks remain connected. Kadam adds its own demand. Sources are compared on actual revenue rather than headline CPM, and traffic allocation can change automatically at segment level. For publishers, the proposition comes down to three things: more competition for traffic, more accurate allocation and less manual optimization — with 0% mediation fee. Learn more about Kadam Smart Mediation →

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