IAB Tech Lab Introduces PAIR (Publisher Advertiser Identity Reconciliation) Protocol for Advertisers and Publishers

New Open Standard Enables Secure, First-Party Data Matching Through Interoperability Between Data Clean Rooms; Open for Public Comment Until October 25, 2024

IAB Tech Lab, the global digital advertising technical standards-setting body, announced the launch of the PAIR (Publisher Advertiser Identity Reconciliation) protocol. Developed by the Rearc Addressability and Privacy Enhancing Technologies (PETs) working group, PAIR provides a privacy-centric approach for advertisers and publishers to match and activate their first-party audiences for advertising use cases without relying on third-party cookies.

Google initially donated the PAIR protocol to IAB Tech Lab, and the working group has further developed it into an open standard that enables interoperability between data clean rooms and allows all DSPs to adopt the protocol for enhanced privacy-safe audience targeting. As part of this effort, IAB Tech Lab will be updating the PAIR prebid module so it can be leveraged by all Data Clean Rooms and DSPs, as well as publishing open-source reference implementation to support adoption by publishers. The PAIR protocol is open for public comment starting today and continuing until October 25, 2024.

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“Privacy-enhancing technologies are providing a path to unlocking first-party data in secure and privacy-centric approaches for both advertisers and publishers,” said Shailley Singh, EVP, Product, and COO, IAB Tech Lab. “PAIR is designed as an open standard to help advertisers and publishers choose their preferred Data Clean Room and DSP partners. It’s an important step forward for privacy-first advertising while maintaining the ability for advertisers to target and activate audiences effectively and for publishers to monetize their audience without data leakage.”

The PAIR protocol uses advanced cryptographic methods to enable secure matching of multiple-encrypted keys without exposing personal information. This allows advertisers to activate matching audiences and engage potential customers who have interacted with their brands. Meanwhile, publishers benefit from increased revenue opportunities by leveraging authenticated users and matching them with advertiser data while preventing data leakage.

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“PAIR is about making privacy-first data matching and activation work in the real world,” said Bosko Milekic, Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer, Optable. “So far, this has only been possible with advertisers and publishers using the same clean room vendor, but open PAIR makes it possible across vendors. This makes PAIR a foundational standard for enabling a thriving and interoperable data collaboration ecosystem.”

As the industry continues to shift towards privacy-safe solutions, IAB Tech Lab will remain a key source for addressability standards that help advertisers and publishers adapt and thrive.