Google-owned YouTube shook up its Measurement Program on Monday, adding several new companies to its roster of approved vendors while also excluding one longtime partner after it refused to sign a contract that would limit what it can and cannot report to its clients.
The YouTube Measurement Program (YTMP) was created in 2017 and gives approved third-party vendors access to its treasure trove of data through an API. These companies in turn use that data to sell brands and agencies services in areas such as measurement or brand safety.
“You are talking about billions of views—that is what the API brings to the table,” says Jed Hartman, chief commercial officer at Channel Factory, an approved YouTube Measurement partner. “What you do with that data is essential.”
OpenSlate was among the five initial companies included under YTMP when it debuted in 2017, but was notably absent from the list of updated vendors. The company is refusing to sign a contract with YouTube, which, under the terms, would prevent it from reporting whether ads ran next to videos with questionable or harmful content, such as those that include profanity, illegal substances or violence, according to an executive familiar with the negotiations.