Much of the discussion regarding transparent media buying has painted the leading network agencies as the bad guys for not disclosing or passing along rebates, hiding programmatic fees and commission, and disagreements regarding data and tech ownership.

This may be true, as the business ethics of many of the big networks is now being called into question. However, advertisers aren’t entirely blameless in this situation. After all, they’ve been driving down commission rates through their procurement departments, tasked with achieving the lowest possible price for the media. As a result, not enough consideration is given to the quality of the ad tech provider and service levels required to ensure profitability, performance and transparency in media buying.

Read the full Drum opinion here.