Drawbridge Says It Now Supports Video In Its Cross-Device Ad Targeting

Drawbridge, the Kleiner Perkins- and Sequoia-backed startup that targets ads across devices, announced today that it has added support for video ads, too.

It sounds like the targeting technology remains the same. Drawbridge is still looking at user behavior to suggest when multiple devices are likely being used by the same person, which in turn allows advertisers to use desktop data to improve the targeting of their mobile ads. It’s just adding video into the mix, as well.

However, co-founder and CEO Kamakshi Sivaramakrishnan told me that this is still a significant move for the company. For one thing, there’s the general rise in video advertising, particularly on mobile. For another, she said that this should help Drawbridge expand into other advertising categories, such as entertainment and automotive.

For example, if someone watches a movie trailer on their computer, Sivaramakrishnan suggested that it’s useful for a movie studio to know that, so that they can deliver targeted marketing and promotions to their smartphone.

Moving forward, Sivaramakrishnan said she wants to do more to support different types of “creative dimensions” at Drawbridge.

“I don’t think we’ll ever be a creative shop,” she said. “What we will do is expand our arsenal to support a myriad of formats that are very relevant across a spectrum of performance.”

Drawbridge says it has added new metrics to its ad reporting as part of its video support — in addition to ad clicks and impressions, it’s also looking at completion rates, viewability, and drop-off points.

And the company can both host ads directly or integrate with existing video ad platforms. As part of today’s announcement, it’s unveiling its first partnership on this front with Twitter-owned MoPub.

“Partnering with Drawbridge provides immediate benefits to our clients, as well as advances video advertising in general,” said MoPub Director of Exchange Janae McDonough in the announcement release.