oRTB Integration FAQ – Audiohook

OpenRTB Specifications & Transport

What currency does Audiohook support in bid requests?

Audiohook supports USD.

Does Audiohook support compressed (gzip) bid requests?

Yes, check out the added gzip instructions in the

Does Audiohook use a global endpoint or region-specific endpoints?

Audiohook uses region-specific endpoints. Currently, only the us-east region is supported, and the endpoint URL provided will reflect this.

What version of the OpenRTB specification does Audiohook support?

Audiohook supports OpenRTB version 2.6.

Does Audiohook support multiple imp objects in a single bid request?

Yes, multiple imp objects are supported in accordance with the OpenRTB 2.6 specification.

Does Audiohook bid on the open marketplace (i.e., pmp.private_auction = 0)?

Yes, Audiohook participates in the open marketplace.

Does Audiohook require any custom extensions (ext) in the bid request?

No, Audiohook does not require any specific custom fields or extensions in the bid request.

Bid Response & Ad Markup

Where is the VAST or ad markup returned in the bid response?

The VAST/ad markup is returned in the adm field of the bid response.

For how long is the VAST returned in the bid response valid?

The VAST itself does not expire. However, start events that occur more than 24 hours after the bid response are considered invalid for measurement and billing purposes.

Does Audiohook include any custom macros in tracking URLs?

Yes. The ${AUCTION_PRICE} macro is supported.

Measurement & Billing

How does Audiohook count a billable impression?

Billable impressions are measured using the win notification and VAST tracking events:

Win notification is acknowledged via the VAST Impression event

Playback confirmation is measured via the VAST Start event

These events are used for billing and reporting purposes.

Podcast Inventory (IAB feed type 3) – RSS & Enclosure URL Passing

Why are RSS feed and enclosure URLs important?

Audiohook operates as a performance-based buyer. Our bidding systems use machine learning models to evaluate the value of each bid request in real time.

For podcast inventory specifically, the following fields materially impact how our models score and bid:

RSS Feed URL (show-level feed)

Enclosure URL (episode-level audio file)

These signals allow us to:

Perform show-level performance modeling

Optimize bids at the episode level

Adjust bids dynamically based on historical outcomes

Attribute conversions accurately

What happens if this data is not included?

We can still buy the inventory.

However:

Without RSS and enclosure data, our models lose important performance signals. As a result:

Inventory will be valued conservatively

Bid density may decrease

CPMs will be significantly lower

Because our system is performance-driven, missing content-level data directly reduces the modeled value of the impression.

Revenue Opportunity

Partners who pass RSS feed and enclosure URLs correctly enable:

Full content-level optimization

Higher bid confidence

Increased bid density

More competitive CPMs

In many cases, providing this data can result in up to 10x higher revenue compared to requests where content-level signals are unavailable.

We view this as a revenue optimization opportunity, not a compliance requirement.

Recommended Format (IAB-Aligned)

While podcast-specific fields are not fully standardized across oRTB implementations, we recommend aligning with IAB guidance within the content object:

{"content":{"title":"Podcast Episode Title","series":"Podcast Show Name","url":"https://publisher.com/episode/123","context":3,"cat":["IAB1-7"],"ext":{"rss":{"feed_url":"https://publisher.com/feed.xml","guid":"episode-guid","episode_number":123,"season":4}}}}

Preferred mapping:

content.ext.rss.feed_url → RSS feed URL

Enclosure (episode audio file URL) → content.url or clearly defined episode-level field

Are partners required to use this exact structure?

No.

If these values are passed elsewhere in the bid request, that is acceptable.

However:

If you use a different structure, you must clearly inform us which fields contain:

The RSS feed URL

The enclosure URL

This ensures we can correctly map the fields on our backend and unlock full optimization.