Ad Tech Insights: AI Search Traffic and Life After OpenWrap

At Relevant Digital, July’s discussions have highlighted two shifts affecting publishers: the changing role of search traffic in audience growth and the growing need to reassess header-bidding infrastructure as established solutions evolve or exit the market. In this month’s Ad Tech Insights, our team looks at what these developments mean in practice.

Thuy Ho, Senior Sales Manager, examines the findings of the AOP’s Artificial Intelligence Publisher Impact Study and considers how UK publishers can respond as AI-generated search results reduce referral traffic and weaken the value of high-volume content strategies.

Samantha Giaver, VP Sales, explores the alternatives available to publishers ahead of the planned sunset of PubMatic OpenWrap in December. She discusses what independent, demand-agnostic wrapper providers can offer compared with SSP-owned solutions, from greater flexibility and auction neutrality to broader functionality, while also highlighting the importance of evaluating total operating costs, support, and measurable yield impact.

These perspectives underscore a broader shift toward greater publisher control: building direct relationships with audiences, investing in distinctive content, and selecting technology partners for transparency, flexibility, and long-term value.

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AI Search and UK Publishers: Takeaways from the AOP Impact Study

The study’s findings suggest UK publishers can no longer rely on Google referrals and high-volume content strategies to sustain audience and revenue growth. As AI increasingly answers straightforward queries within search results, evergreen guides and how-to content are particularly vulnerable, while opinion, interviews, original reporting and specialist analysis remain harder to replace. Publishers should consider resisting the urge to produce more articles simply to offset falling traffic, as this risks weakening engagement and further reducing per-page returns.

Building Direct Audience Relationships and New Revenue

Instead, they should invest in distinctive journalism, recognizable editorial voices and formats that offer first-hand expertise, exclusive access, or a clear point of view. Reach PLC is an example of a publisher taking this approach. Building stronger direct relationships with audiences through newsletters, subscriptions, apps, communities, and video will also reduce dependence on search platforms.

At the same time, publishers should diversify revenue through direct advertising, memberships, commerce and AI licensing agreements. Smaller, programmatic-dependent publishers face the greatest pressure and will need to identify defensible niches quickly, because waiting for referral traffic to recover is unlikely to be a viable strategy.

-  Thuy Ho - Senior Sales Manager, Relevant Digital, Part-time Marketing Coordinator for Prebid

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Replacing PubMatic OpenWrap: What Independent Wrappers Offer

For publishers evaluating alternatives ahead of OpenWrap’s sunset this December, an independent, agnostic wrapper vendor can offer a demand-neutral approach to managing Prebid without participating in the auction itself.

Unlike SSP-owned wrappers, independent wrappers are typically designed around publisher infrastructure and yield optimization as their core business, which may provide broader capabilities and strong continuous development. This can reduce the need for additional tools or internal development while giving publishers greater flexibility over demand partners and future integrations.

Look Beyond Wrapper Fees

However, these platforms, such as Relevant Yield, often follow a SaaS pricing model, whereas SSP wrappers may have little or no direct fee because they are funded through the provider’s broader demand business. Publishers should therefore compare total operating costs, functionality, support, migration requirements, and measurable yield impact rather than assess options based on wrapper fees alone.

- Samantha Giaver - VP Sales, Relevant Digital