Industry leaders including Amazon, NBCUniversal, and Index Exchange back protocols to enhance reliability, scalability, and monetization in live streaming.
New York, August 18, 2025:The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) Tech Lab has introduced a set of proposed standards aimed at transforming the way live sports and tentpole events are streamed and monetized, addressing long-standing technical and operational challenges in programmatic advertising.
Industry leaders—including Amazon DSP, NBCUniversal, and Index Exchange—have voiced their support, highlighting the premium nature of live streaming environments and the urgent need for standardized frameworks.
“Live streaming events represent a unique opportunity for advertisers. The premium nature of these environments requires thoughtful technical infrastructure that can adapt in real time,” said Neal Richter, Director, Amazon DSP. “By establishing common protocols and APIs, we’re collectively moving toward a more reliable set of standards that benefits viewers, content creators, and brands.”
One of the key proposals includes an API designed to provide projected viewership estimates for upcoming events over a rolling 2–3-week window. This feature would help publishers prepare for surges in traffic while enabling advertisers to optimize budgets, deals, and delivery strategies with greater precision.
NBCUniversal, which has long invested in live streaming innovation, also emphasized the importance of these guidelines. “NBCUniversal has been a leader in live streaming for several years, paving the way for advertisers to reap the benefits of tentpole live event programming across news, sports, and entertainment,” said Ryan McConville, EVP, Chief Product Officer, Advertising Platforms & Operations, NBCUniversal. “With our extensive work in live event advertising, we have unique insight and expertise, and believe that the industry at large will benefit from the standards the IAB has put forward.”
Catherine Cho, Lead Product Manager at Index Exchange, noted the balance of risk and reward inherent in live streaming. “The high degree of concurrency and unpredictability in live TV streams is both a challenge and a tremendous opportunity for the programmatic ecosystem,” she said. “The goal of this effort is to tame the chaos with standards and make every streaming impression opportunity biddable and addressable by buyers.”
With these proposed frameworks, publishers, advertisers, and technology providers will have a consistent, reliable foundation to deliver premium, seamless live sports streaming experiences.
The IAB Tech Lab is inviting all stakeholders—including publishers, advertisers, developers, and technology partners—to review and provide feedback on the proposed guidelines.
About IAB Tech Lab
The IAB Tech Lab is a global digital advertising technical standards body dedicated to improving efficiency, transparency, and innovation across the digital media ecosystem. Through the development of technical solutions and standards, the organization works to drive growth and trust in digital advertising worldwide.
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