Video is one of the most valuable but complex revenue streams for publishers. Today, many publishers still rely heavily on non-programmatic video monetisation, such as direct IOs, sponsorships, curated PMPs, and sales-led video packages.
Strangely, not as many are leveraging Prebid’s video capabilities. Rather than replacing direct video sales, Prebid’s video options help publishers commercialise non-guaranteed video inventory more efficiently, while aligning with evolving industry standards around transparency, user intent, and experience.
This article breaks down the video options available via Prebid, explains how they work, and shows how they fit into today’s mixed video monetisation strategies
Prebid and Video
Prebid.js is the most widely used header bidding wrapper largely because it supports display, mobile, and video in a single, extensible framework. It provides tools that allow header bidding video demand to compete with publishers’ ad server video demand.
For video, Prebid enables publishers to introduce auction dynamics into video placements that would otherwise rely on waterfalls, single-SSP setups, or fixed pricing.
While Prebid does not dictate how video is sold, it provides technical options that publishers can apply selectively, depending on their content, audience behaviour, and commercial strategy.
Three Main Video Options Offered via Prebid
Prebid Video supports 3 primary video contexts: in-stream, out-stream, and long-form video with ad pods. Each serves a different purpose and fits differently into non-programmatic monetisation.
1. In-stream video
In-stream video ads play within video content that users intentionally choose to watch. Ads can appear before, during, or after the content, and the publisher must provide and control the video player.
Historically, in-stream has been considered the most “premium” form of online video advertising. However, IAB’s 2022 Digital Video In-Stream Ad Format Guidelines have significantly tightened what qualifies as true in-stream.
IAB Tech Lab guidelines emphasise user intent as the defining factor. To qualify as in-stream, the video must be the primary content the user chose to watch, typically initiated by a click, and played in a way that reflects intentional viewing. As a result, a large share of what was previously labelled in-stream across the web is now more accurately classified as out-stream or accompanying content.
Industry estimates suggest that less than 10% of web video inventory will meet the strictest interpretation of in-stream going forward. This has major implications for both buyers and publishers.
How does this fit into non-programmatic monetisation?
For publishers with genuine video destinations, in-stream remains highly valuable:
- It aligns well with direct sponsorships and premium IOs.
- It supports PMPs for brand-led campaigns.
- It justifies higher CPMs due to limited supply and stronger user intent.
In this context, Prebid is not a replacement for direct sales. Instead, it allows publishers to:
- Introduce competition for non-guaranteed impressions.
- Set clearer floors informed by real bidding data.
- Validate the true market value of their inventory.
2. Out-stream video
Out-stream video ads exist independently of video content. They often appear within editorial pages, expanding or playing when they come into view, and collapsing once finished. These units rely on a renderer rather than a traditional video player.
Out-stream is frequently misunderstood as a “lesser” format, but this perception is changing rapidly as in-stream definitions tighten. Out-stream video is becoming more transparently labelled, easier for buyers to evaluate and price correctly, and increasingly attractive for performance-driven campaigns.
Out-stream typically commands lower CPMs than true in-stream, often by 15 - 20%. However, it compensates with greater scale, strong viewability and completion rates when implemented well, and cost-efficient buying models such as CPV or completed-view optimisation.
How does this fit into non-programmatic monetisation?
For content-led publishers, out-stream video complements direct sales rather than competes with them. Because:
- It monetises pages that would never support in-stream video, like article pages, feeds, and text-heavy content, where users are not intentionally watching video.
- It protects premium video environments as publishers are likely to avoid cramming additional ads into true in-stream video content. This helps preserve user experience, completion rates, and the premium perception required to support direct and sponsorship-led video deals.
- It provides predictable revenue without relying on guaranteed deals.
Prebid’s role here is to ensure that out-stream demand competes fairly, rather than being locked into a single SSP or fixed pricing model.
3. Long-form video and ad pods
Long-form video content follows a clear narrative arc with a beginning, middle, and end. Examples include shows, episodes, live streams, or extended editorial videos. Ads appear in ad pods, which group multiple ads into a single break.
Prebid supports long-form video through ad pod contexts, enabling more sophisticated auction logic at the pod level rather than treating each ad as a standalone impression.
How does this fit into non-programmatic monetisation?
Long-form video often sits closest to traditional broadcast or streaming models because:
- It supports sponsorships, takeovers, and premium packages.
- It demands careful ad load management.
- It benefits from pod-level pricing and sequencing.
In these environments, Prebid is typically used selectively to:
- Price non-guaranteed pod opportunities.
- Complement, not override, direct commitments.
- Provide data that informs pricing and packaging decisions.
Prebid Video in a Mixed Monetisation Strategy
Most publishers today operate hybrid video monetisation models, where direct and sponsorship deals establish the premium baseline, PMPs sit between sales-led and programmatic buying, and open programmatic absorbs the long tail of inventory.
In this setup, Prebid Video works best as an optimisation layer rather than a replacement for direct sales, helping publishers increase yield on non-guaranteed impressions, gain clearer visibility into real bid dynamics, and ensure inventory is classified in a way that matches buyer expectations. When applied thoughtfully, it strengthens the overall monetisation mix, but misalignment remains the key risk: mislabelled inventory, poor user experience, or excessive ad load can quickly erode both programmatic performance and the value of premium direct video.
Supporting Prebid Video in Practice
Implementing and managing Prebid Video requires ongoing attention across formats, players, and demand partners. Some publishers choose to manage this entirely in-house, while others use tooling to simplify configuration, monitoring, and analytics.
Platforms like Relevant Yield support Prebid Video by enabling publishers to:
- Maintain and adjust video header bidding setups across formats.
- Add or test demand partners from a UI instead of relying on engineers.
- Monitor performance and technical health in real time.
Used this way, such tools support Prebid rather than abstracting it away, allowing publishers to keep strategic control while reducing operational overhead.
Conclusion
The video options offered via Prebid reflect the reality of today’s video market: fragmented, standard-driven, and increasingly focused on transparency and user intent.
-
In-stream remains premium, but scarce.
-
Out-stream is changing to be a more transparent & strong revenue source.
-
Long-form video requires precision, not volume.
For publishers exploring non-programmatic video monetisation, Prebid Video is best understood as a commercial safety net and optimisation tool. When applied thoughtfully, it strengthens existing strategies rather than disrupting them, helping publishers adapt to a video ecosystem that is becoming more honest, more segmented, and ultimately more sustainable.