Smaato

What Smaato does

Smaato operates a programmatic advertising marketplace that connects publishers of mobile, connected TV (CTV), and web inventory with brand advertisers, agencies, and demand-side platforms (DSPs). The platform enables publishers to monetize inventory through programmatic auctions while giving advertisers access to curated, audience-enriched deals. It operates as Brand+ Marketplace within Verve Group, Inc. following a 2026-01 rebrand that consolidated Smaato's publisher monetization stack with Verve Group's broader ad tech portfolio.

The technical stack is built around an OpenRTB-compliant programmatic infrastructure, the Verve NextGen Mobile SDK for in-app integration, and AI-curated deal matching that uses both ID-based and ID-less signals. A proprietary user value enrichment layer processes behavioral and contextual data to predict eCPM outcomes, and the platform supports IAB OMSDK viewability, app-ads.txt, sellers.json, and integrations with measurement partners (GeoEdge, Human, Pixalate) plus Apple SKAN attribution. Compliance posture includes GDPR, CCPA, and COPPA.

Smaato's revenue model is marketplace commission on programmatic ad transactions; pricing is not publicly disclosed and is negotiated per publisher and advertiser agreement. The go-to-market is primarily self-serve via SDK and OpenRTB integration, supplemented by direct enterprise relationships with Fortune 100 brand advertisers and agencies. Customer segments span mobile app publishers, CTV publishers, web publishers, brand advertisers/agencies, performance marketers, and DSPs. The platform reports presence in 150+ countries with data centers across North America, APAC, and Europe.

Name

Smaato

Legal name

Verve Group, Inc.

Website

https://smaato.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Smaato operates a programmatic advertising marketplace, now branded as Brand+ Marketplace within Verve Group, connecting mobile, CTV, and web publishers with Fortune 100 advertisers, agencies, and 100+ DSPs across 150+ countries through AI-curated deal matching and the Verve NextGen Mobile SDK.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Programmatic Advertising Marketplace: Smaato operates as a programmatic advertising marketplace (Brand+ Marketplace) connecting publishers with advertisers. The platform enables publishers to monetize their inventory (mobile apps, CTV, web) through programmatic auctions, earning revenue from ad impressions served to users.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Smaato operates as Brand+ Marketplace, a programmatic advertising platform that connects publishers with brand advertisers and demand-side platforms across mobile apps, connected TV (CTV), and web inventory. Publishers integrate via the Verve NextGen mobile SDK or OpenRTB to access direct-sourced demand from 100+ DSPs and Fortune 100 brands, with AI-curated deals that leverage ID and ID-less signals for higher eCPMs.

Product overview

Smaato operates as Brand+ Marketplace within the Verve Group ecosystem — a unified platform-plus-modules architecture. The core Brand+ Marketplace (formerly Smaato) serves as the central monetization hub, supported by specialized modules for Mobile App Monetization, Multi-channel Monetization, and Content Amplification. Publishers access the platform via the Verve NextGen Mobile SDK or OpenRTB integration through the Integration Center, connecting to 100+ DSPs and Fortune 100 brand advertisers across 150+ countries.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Brand+ Marketplace: Multi-channel monetization platform for publishers enabling access to premium brand advertisers across mobile, CTV, and web.

Products and services

• Brand+ Marketplace (formerly Smaato) Multi-channel monetization platform enabling publishers to maximize revenue from mobile, connected TV, and web inventory through AI-curated deals and direct-sourced brand demand from Fortune 100 advertisers, operating across 150+ countries.
• Mobile App Monetization Monetization solution for mobile app publishers providing high-quality brand demand and enriched data signals via the Verve NextGen mobile SDK, designed to maximize yield on mobile app inventory.
• Multi-channel Monetization Cross-channel monetization offering enabling publishers to monetize inventory across mobile, CTV, and web screens through a single programmatic marketplace connection.
• Content Amplification Service enabling publishers to amplify web pages, promote podcasts, and grow revenue by curating high-intent advertising moments on the web.
• Verve NextGen Mobile SDK Mobile SDK enabling publishers to integrate monetization, access high-quality brand demand, and enrich ad requests with behavioral and contextual data signals for higher eCPMs.

Named customers12 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration13 records

AI capability3 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

Nine partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• GeoEdgecoreTechnology or IntegrationIndependent measurement partner providing ad quality checks for the Brand+ Marketplace platform, ensuring brand safety and ad quality standards are maintained.
• HumancoreTechnology or IntegrationFraud prevention partner providing protection against invalid traffic and ad fraud for the programmatic advertising ecosystem.
• PixalatecoreTechnology or IntegrationFraud prevention and ad quality measurement partner providing continuous monitoring and protection against sophisticated ad fraud schemes.
• IAB OMSDKcoreTechnology or IntegrationIndustry-standard viewability measurement solution supporting standardized ad measurement across the platform.
• Mobile Measurement Partners (MMPs)coreTechnology or IntegrationAttribution measurement partners enabling accurate campaign performance tracking and attribution for advertisers.
• Apple SKAN/AppAttribution APIcoreTechnology or IntegrationApple's privacy-compliant attribution API supporting SKAN-based campaign measurement for iOS apps in the advertising ecosystem.
• PrebidcoreTechnology or IntegrationIndustry affiliation membership providing programmatic auction infrastructure and header bidding solutions for publishers.
• IAB Tech LabcoreTechnology or IntegrationIndustry affiliation membership contributing to and adopting IAB technical standards for digital advertising including OpenRTB compliance.
• Verve GroupflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerSmaato has been rebranded as Brand+ Marketplace under Verve Group, creating a unified programmatic advertising platform with expanded capabilities across mobile, CTV, and web monetization.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Index Exchange: Independent global ad exchange and SSP focused on premium publisher inventory across web, mobile, and CTV. Closely overlaps Smaato's omnichannel monetization offering for publishers.
• PubMatic: Independent supply-side platform serving premium publishers across mobile, web, and CTV. Directly comparable to Smaato's programmatic marketplace model and competing for the same omnichannel publisher budgets.
• OpenX: Independent ad exchange providing programmatic monetization across mobile, web, and CTV. Directly comparable SSP competing for the same publisher supply and brand demand relationships.
• Adform: European-headquartered independent ad-tech platform offering DSP, SSP, and ad-server capabilities across display, video, mobile, and CTV. Comparable in offering breadth and independent positioning to Smaato.
• Equativ: Independent ad-tech platform (formerly Smart AdServer) offering SSP, ad server, and curation solutions across CTV, video, and display. Closely comparable in omnichannel publisher monetization and curated deal offerings.
• Magnite: Largest independent SSP formed from the merger of Rubicon Project and Telaria, with a strong focus on CTV and mobile video. Direct competitor to Smaato/Brand+ Marketplace for publisher monetization across omnichannel inventory.

Broad incumbents

• Microsoft Monetize (formerly Xandr): Microsoft's programmatic platform (incorporating Xandr assets) offers SSP and curation capabilities across CTV, mobile, and web. Operates as a broad incumbent with overlapping publisher monetization offerings.
• Google Ad Manager / AdX: Google's dominant ad exchange and ad-server stack is the largest incumbent in programmatic publisher monetization, with overlapping demand, supply, and auction infrastructure competing head-to-head with Smaato's marketplace.

Others

• LiveRamp: Data collaboration and identity provider underpinning cross-channel addressability. Comparable as an enabling ecosystem partner for ID-less and authenticated identity solutions relevant to Smaato's addressability stack.

Emerging players

• The Trade Desk: Although primarily a buy-side DSP, The Trade Desk's Solimar and CTV-focused curation partnerships increasingly overlap with sell-side curation logic similar to Smaato's AI-curated deals, positioning it as an emerging adjacent competitor.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/verve_inc
• Facebookfacebook.com/VerveGroup
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/smaato
• Instagraminstagram.com/lifeatvervegroup

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds5 records

Investors4 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A1 record

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Smaato