How do inventory sources work in Display & Video 360, and how do deals and site lists fit together?
Part of Google Ads placements
The short answer
In Display & Video 360 an inventory source is an exchange or a private deal that supplies impressions to a line item. With no inventory source targeting, a line item buys open auction inventory on every enabled exchange. Deals apply only when the deal or a deal group is added, and site lists narrow that supply.
Key takeaways
- Public inventory (open auction and sub-exchanges) and private deals are separate controls; excluding an exchange does not block deals on it.
- Synced deals wait in Negotiations for acceptance, while a Programmatic Guaranteed proposal is finalized when you click Accept and then configured in My Inventory.
- Every targeting layer narrows the inventory source: a site list on a deal line item buys only deal impressions on the listed sites.
- A missing deal is a permission, context or sync question before it is a delivery question.
What are inventory sources in Display & Video 360?
An inventory source is an exchange or private deal that supplies buyable impressions to your line items.
The same help page sets the default that shapes every buy: a line item with no inventory source targeting targets open auction inventory on all enabled exchanges, and deals are only targeted when the deal itself or a deal group is added. It also says excluding an entire exchange under Public Inventory, which also holds sub-exchanges, does not block private deals on it, because public inventory controls are completely separate from private deals.
| Inventory source | What it is | How it reaches a line item |
|---|---|---|
| Open auction | An exchange's inventory as a whole | Targeted by default on every enabled exchange unless inventory source targeting is set |
| Non-guaranteed auction (private auction) | A deal with a floor price, competing in an auction | Accepted or created in My Inventory, then added under Deals and Packages |
| Non-guaranteed fixed (preferred deal) | A deal at a fixed CPM with no volume commitment | Accepted or created in My Inventory, then added under Deals and Packages |
| Programmatic Guaranteed | A negotiated reservation of impressions at an agreed price | Accepted in Negotiations and configured; its insertion order is set up automatically |
| Package | A collection of non-guaranteed inventory put together by sellers, possibly from several publishers | Assigned from Marketplace to an existing or new line item |
How do you accept a deal in DV360?
Acceptance depends on how the deal arrived. Google's page on synced deals (opens in a new tab) says exchanges that integrate through the Seller API sync their deals automatically, and new deals are accepted or archived under Inventory, then Negotiations, where they show Action required. Deals synced through Google Ad Manager must be accepted before they appear in My Inventory or targeting. Google's negotiation page (opens in a new tab) adds an import route by deal ID or order ID.
| Route | Where you act | What acceptance does | Watch for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Synced deal from a Seller API exchange | Inventory, Negotiations, items marked Action required | Creates the inventory source; later changes from the exchange update it | A deal created by hand from its ID is not synced, even on an exchange that syncs |
| Imported negotiation | Negotiations, Import negotiation, then the exchange and the deal ID or order ID | Brings a seller's negotiation into an advertiser so it can be accepted there | Needs at least a Standard role, and the deal must be owned by the advertiser's parent partner |
| Programmatic Guaranteed proposal | Negotiations, then Accept | Google says that once you click Accept, the proposal is finalized | The deal still has to be configured with advertisers, campaign and creatives in My Inventory |
| Instant deal | Create it, request a forecast, accept it in Negotiations, activate it in My inventory | The exchange creates the deal and sends it to Display & Video 360 | Google notes that two exchanges review some instant deals by hand, which may take up to one business day |
Accepting and configuring a Programmatic Guaranteed deal
- Review the proposal in Negotiations. Negotiable fields include rate, daypart, units, dates, audience list and demographics.
- Click Accept when terms match. Google's Programmatic Guaranteed page (opens in a new tab) says the proposal is finalized at that point; later changes go through Renegotiate.
- Configure at partner level. Under My Inventory, Action required, choose Configure and pick the advertisers, a default advertiser and its campaign.
- Assign creatives for every size and duration. Google warns that VPAID creatives, or ones without non-personalized ad support, may under deliver.
- Finish ahead of launch. Google advises configuring at least one to two days before the launch date in case of issues.
What are inventory source groups?
Definition
- Deal group (inventory source group)
- A named set of deals in My Inventory that a line item targets as one item. Google's reporting dimension for them is Inventory source groups.
Google's page on managing deals (opens in a new tab) creates groups from the Deal groups tab in My Inventory, with documented limits: up to 400 deals per group, no deal in more than 10 groups, and up to 100 groups per line item. Each group is assigned to a single advertiser or to all advertisers. A new publisher deal added to a group reaches every line item targeting that group in one change.
| Approach | Strength | Weakness |
|---|---|---|
| Deals added one by one to each line item | Each line item shows exactly which deals it buys | Adding a publisher means editing every line item |
| A deal group per client or per theme | One change reaches every line item targeting the group, and reports split by group | A deal added to the group starts buying wherever the group is targeted, so membership needs an owner |
| A package from Marketplace | A seller assembles the inventory, possibly across publishers | Google says the Troubleshooter doesn't support packages, so diagnosis is harder |
How do site lists and inventory sources combine?
Google's targeting overview (opens in a new tab) says Display & Video 360 bids on impressions that match a line item's targeting settings, and that targeting one option of a type excludes everything else of that type. Inventory source and Apps & URLs are separate types, so each narrows the other: a line item with two deals and a 60 site channel buys only deal impressions on those sites.
| Combination | What the line item can buy | Condition Google documents |
|---|---|---|
| Deal plus a site inclusion channel | Deal impressions on listed sites only | The publisher must send domain names in the deal's bid requests; Google calls these branded deals |
| Deal plus a site exclusion channel | Deal impressions except on excluded sites | Same domain condition; otherwise the exclusion has nothing to match |
| Video deal plus website targeting | Impressions where the player runs on the targeted site | Without website targeting, a video inventory source can serve wherever its player is embedded |
| Exchange excluded under Public Inventory plus a deal on that exchange | The deal still delivers | Public inventory controls are separate from private deals |
The branded deal condition comes from Google's best practices for setting up deals (opens in a new tab), which asks buyers to confirm the publisher sends domain information before relying on URL or channel targeting on a deal. The video player point is from Google's page on adding an inventory source (opens in a new tab), and the app point from its Apps & URLs page (opens in a new tab).
What does an inventory source setup look like on a real brief?
Fictional example
A boutique hotel group buys British Columbia travel inventory through deals and a site list
A fictional group of three boutique hotels in Vancouver and Victoria, British Columbia, asks its agency's trading desk for English display and online video for winter weekends, beside travel, food and arts coverage. The planner delivers 45 approved publisher sites and two private auction deals from regional publishers.
One deal arrives synced and waiting in Negotiations, so the desk accepts it there rather than typing the ID. The second publisher started its negotiation on the seller side, so the desk imports it by deal ID at the advertiser level. Both go into a deal group assigned only to this advertiser.
The display line item targets the group plus a channel holding the 45 sites, and the desk asks both publishers to confirm they send domain names. The video line item adds website targeting, because one publisher's player is embedded on partner sites outside the list.
How does PlacementGraph prepare a site list for deals and line items?
Why might a deal not show in DV360?
A deal missing from My Inventory or from line item targeting is a different problem from a visible deal that does not spend. Google's managing deals page (opens in a new tab) says My Inventory shows deals in the context of the partner or advertiser you are in, publishers can only permission deals at the partner level, and in campaign context only deals of the campaign's parent advertiser are visible.
Before asking the seller to resend a deal
- You are in the partner or advertiser the deal is permissioned to, and in campaign context the deal belongs to the campaign's parent advertiser.
- The deal is not waiting in Negotiations with Action required, including any deal synced through Google Ad Manager.
- The negotiation was not already imported by another advertiser; Google says to contact the seller if it was.
- The My Inventory filter is set to Status: All, and the deal is not archived.
- For an instant deal, any manual review by the exchange, which Google says may take up to one business day, has had time to finish.
- For a Programmatic Guaranteed deal that will not sync, the problem deal was archived and the publisher asked to push a duplicate with a new deal ID, as Google advises.
Once the deal is visible and targeted but not spending, the line item's Troubleshooter tab, described on Google's troubleshooting page (opens in a new tab), breaks lost impressions into prebid filtering, targeting, creatives and auction losses. For entering a deal ID by hand, see how to add a deal ID in a DSP; for building the site list itself, see Display & Video 360 channels and the placement targeting hub.
Frequently asked questions
Can I block specific sellers across every deal and auction?
Yes, with a seller ID blocklist. Google says each partner can have one, it applies to all spend from the partner, and it is checked for each impression served. The upload is a CSV with an exchange ID and a seller ID per record, and Google lists sellers.json files as one place to find seller IDs.
Can I see a deal's floor price, dates and terms in DV360?
Sometimes. Google says this data is entered when each deal is set up and is not always available when a deal is added. Where it exists, My Inventory shows the deal's floor price and lets you change each line item's bid from the same table.
Who can see a deal's details inside a partner?
Google says publishers permission deals at the partner level, and unless permissions are restricted to specific advertisers, full deal details are visible to every advertiser under that partner. Agencies with several clients under one partner should restrict each deal to its advertiser.
What changes to an accepted deal need approval again?
Google lists CPM amount, approved impression volumes, delivery dates, archiving or adding line items, ad sizes and additional terms as changes that need approval after a deal is accepted. Deals that have already ended cannot be changed.
Sources
- Inventory source targeting (opens in a new tab)Display & Video 360 Help
- About synced deals (opens in a new tab)Display & Video 360 Help
- Negotiate a deal in Display & Video 360 (opens in a new tab)Display & Video 360 Help
- Programmatic Guaranteed deals (opens in a new tab)Display & Video 360 Help
- Instant deals (opens in a new tab)Display & Video 360 Help
- Manage your deals (opens in a new tab)Display & Video 360 Help
- Packages (opens in a new tab)Display & Video 360 Help
- About targeting in Display & Video 360 (opens in a new tab)Display & Video 360 Help
- Best practices for setting up deals (opens in a new tab)Display & Video 360 Help
- Add an inventory source to Display & Video 360 (opens in a new tab)Display & Video 360 Help
- App, channel, and website targeting (opens in a new tab)Display & Video 360 Help
- Troubleshoot your deals and line items (opens in a new tab)Display & Video 360 Help
Researched and written by PlacementGraph Research. Read how we research, source and update these pages. Corrections: diana@placementgraph.com.