What is ad refresh, and how should buyers read it?
Part of MFA avoidance
The short answer
Ad refresh is when an ad slot loads a new ad without the page reloading, triggered by a timer, a content change or a reader's action. Sellers can declare it in the bid request through OpenRTB's refresh object. Buyers should read refresh as one signal: normal on live pages, a concern when timed refresh runs on pages nobody watches.
Key takeaways
- Refresh comes in three declared trigger types: a reader's action, a change in the page content, and a timer.
- OpenRTB 2.6 lets a seller pass the trigger type, the minimum interval in seconds and how many times the slot has refreshed since the page loaded.
- Google Ad Manager lets refreshing inventory compete only when it is declared, with a 30 second minimum for timed and event refresh on the web.
- The IAB Tech Lab and MRC guidelines ask sellers to disclose site initiated refresh and to report it separately when it is material to a campaign.
- Timed refresh on static pages left open in background tabs deserves the closest look, since the measurement guidelines ask whether an auto-refreshed page is likely to sit in the background.
What is ad refresh?
Ad refresh replaces the ad in a slot while the visitor stays on the same page. Each new ad is a new impression, which can be sold in a new auction, so one page view can produce several impressions from a single slot. The practice has legitimate uses: live scoreboards, market tickers and long reading sessions all give a slot a reason to change.
Definition
- Ad refresh (auto-refresh)
- The IAB Tech Lab and Media Rating Council desktop display guidelines (opens in a new tab) define auto-refresh as serving or changing advertising or content in an automatic manner, set either by a user (user initiated) or by a site without user interaction (site initiated).
That split decides how impressions are counted. The same guidelines, in their October 2017 version, say user initiated refresh is counted as a normal advertising impression. Site initiated refresh is controlled by the content owner and is hard for outside measurement to detect, so the guidelines encourage sellers to disclose it, including its parameters, settings and relative volumes, and to pass that information to measurement companies.
What triggers a refresh, and how is each trigger declared?
Industry specifications name three triggers. IAB Tech Lab's AdCOM 1.0 list of auto refresh triggers (opens in a new tab), which OpenRTB refers to, gives each one a code. Google Ad Manager (opens in a new tab) asks publishers to declare the same three types in its inventory rules and sets a minimum interval for two of them.
| Trigger | AdCOM code and definition | Ad Manager minimum on the web | What a buyer should ask |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unknown | 0: the trigger is not stated | Not applicable | Why the seller cannot say what makes the slot change |
| User action | 1: refresh triggered by a user initiated action such as scrolling | No minimum | Which action counts, and whether one scroll can trigger several refreshes |
| Event | 2: an event driven content change, such as a game score update | 30 seconds | Which page types carry event refresh and how often their content really changes |
| Time | 3: refresh on a predefined interval even without user activity | 30 seconds | The interval, and whether refresh pauses when the tab is hidden |
Google tells publishers that failing to declare refreshing inventory, or declaring it incorrectly, is a policy violation, and that the declaration reaches buyers through its real time bidding protocol: buyers learn that they are purchasing refreshing inventory, the triggers that cause the refresh and the minimum interval to expect.
How does a bid request disclose refresh?
Since the 2.6-202303 update (opens in a new tab), released in April 2023, the OpenRTB 2.6 specification (opens in a new tab) gives each impression an optional refresh object whose fields the specification marks as recommended. A seller that fills it tells bidders, before the auction, how the slot behaves.
| Field | What the specification says | How a buyer can read it |
|---|---|---|
| imp.refresh.count | The number of times this ad slot had been refreshed since last page load | Zero means the first ad in the slot; high counts mean a long visit or an unattended page |
| refsettings.reftype | The type of the declared auto refresh, from the AdCOM trigger list; default 0 | Time based refresh (code 3) deserves the closest look |
| refsettings.minint | The minimum refresh interval in seconds, applying to all refresh types | If the field is absent, the specification says the exposure time is unknown |
Why does ad refresh appear in the MFA definition?
Rapidly auto-refreshing ad placements are one of the five characteristics of made-for-advertising sites that the ANA and partner trade groups (opens in a new tab) named in September 2023, and the same definition lists numerous refreshing banner ads under that heading. The logic is economic. A site that pays for each visit earns more per visit from every extra impression, and refresh multiplies impressions without adding readers.
Refresh on its own does not make a site MFA. The IAB Tech Lab and MRC guidelines expect site initiated refresh to use reasonable rates for the associated content type, naming sports sites, news sites and stock tickers as examples. For auto-refreshed pages, they also ask whether the page is likely to sit in the background or minimized, which diminishes the opportunity to view. A live results page that changes its ads when the score changes is doing what readers expect. Timed refresh on static articles in idle tabs is not.
How can a buyer observe refresh on a candidate site?
Planners may not see bid requests, but refresh can be observed on the page itself. A short, repeatable check gives evidence that a colleague or the seller can reproduce.
A ten minute refresh check
- Open two ordinary articles, one on a phone and one on a desktop. Avoid live pages, so that changing content cannot explain the refresh.
- Leave each page untouched for three minutes. Note every slot that changes and the time between changes. Changes without any scroll or click are site initiated.
- Scroll once and stop. Count how many slots change after a single scroll, which shows how the user action trigger is applied.
- Switch to another tab for two minutes, then return. If the ads changed while the page was hidden, refresh runs when nobody can see the slots. The MRC technical and transparency best practices, printed as Appendix C of the desktop display guidelines, list the browser's Page Visibility API under responsible use of browser tools.
- Record the screen with a visible clock. A short recording settles a dispute faster than written notes.
What does a refresh review look like on a real brief?
Fictional example
Two refreshing sites on a hockey equipment plan in the Maritimes
A fictional Halifax retailer of hockey equipment asks its agency for a display plan in Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island during the junior hockey season, beside local sports coverage and youth hockey content. Two candidate sites both refresh their ads.
The first is a regional sports site with live game pages. Its slots change when a goal or penalty is posted, the seller confirms that event refresh is declared, and ads on its feature articles stay put. The planner keeps it and asks the seller to report refreshed impressions separately, as the guidelines suggest when refresh is material to a campaign.
The second is a hockey trivia site whose quiz pages change every slot on a timer, including while the tab was hidden. The seller cannot say whether refresh is declared or at what interval. Refresh alone does not decide the call, so the planner records the finding with a screen recording and moves on to the site's traffic and ownership checks before making a recommendation.
How does PlacementGraph check ad refresh before a site reaches a plan?
What should a buyer ask a seller about refresh?
Refresh terms belong in the deal conversation, before the first impression serves. The questions below turn the specifications into a short due diligence list for a private marketplace or a direct buy.
Refresh questions for a seller or a deal
- Refresh is declared for this inventory, and the declared trigger types are named.
- The minimum interval in seconds is stated for each trigger type.
- Bid requests carry the OpenRTB refresh object, including the count.
- Refresh pauses when the page is hidden or the slot leaves the screen.
- Refreshed impressions can be reported separately from first impressions.
- The seller states whether a deal can be limited to first impressions in a slot.
Frequently asked questions
Is ad refresh allowed?
Google Ad Manager lets refreshing inventory compete when the publisher declares it, and treats undeclared or wrongly declared refresh as a policy violation. Industry measurement guidelines ask sellers to disclose site initiated refresh and keep rates reasonable for the content type rather than banning it.
Does ad refresh inflate viewability?
It can make viewability look healthy while adding little value. A slot that refreshes as the reader keeps scrolling can produce several viewable impressions in one visit. The OpenRTB specification notes that the declared minimum interval does not account for viewability, so look at refresh counts and time on page together.
Are refreshed impressions counted the same as the first ad in a slot?
Under the IAB Tech Lab and MRC desktop display guidelines, user initiated refresh counts as a normal impression. Site initiated refresh should be disclosed, use reasonable rates for the content type, and be reported separately when the refresh counts are material to a campaign's total impressions.
Do mobile apps refresh ads too?
Yes. Google Ad Manager's app settings offer Google optimized refresh, a custom interval between 30 and 120 seconds, or no refresh, and Google says that not declaring a refresh rate is a policy violation.
Can a buyer avoid refreshed impressions entirely?
Only where the data allows it. When bid requests carry the refresh count, a bidder can value first and refreshed impressions differently, if its buying platform exposes the field. Where it does not, the practical routes are a deal term with the seller and a separate report of refreshed impressions.
Sources
- Desktop Display Impression Measurement Guidelines (MMTF Final v1.1) (opens in a new tab)IAB Tech Lab and Media Rating Council, October 2017
- OpenRTB 2.6 specification: Refresh and RefSettings objects (opens in a new tab)IAB Tech Lab
- OpenRTB 2.6-202303 release notes (opens in a new tab)IAB Tech Lab, April 2023
- AdCOM 1.0: List of auto refresh triggers (opens in a new tab)IAB Tech Lab
- Declare inventory that refreshes (opens in a new tab)Google Ad Manager Help
- Refresh rate for ads in mobile apps (opens in a new tab)Google Ad Manager Help
- Leading Trade Groups Define “Made For Advertising” Websites (opens in a new tab)ANA (Association of National Advertisers), September 26, 2023
Researched and written by PlacementGraph Research. Read how we research, source and update these pages. Corrections: diana@placementgraph.com.