How can I send vpa as click with every ad request?

[Arun Kumar]

Hi Team,

I want to know how can I send the vpa=click with each ad request, I'm using the google autoplay method to autoplay my videojs player but only the first ad request showing VPA as click after that all the ad requests showing vpa=auto.

Here you can check my player

I know if player autoplay then VPA value goes as vpa=auto, but how the first request is going as vpa=click and after that all request showing vpa=auto.

I checked a site where they also using the same tech stacks videojs-ima as I'm using but on each ad request their ad showing vpa=click, Is there any way to send VPA as click on each ad request with autoplay?

[IMA SDK]

Hi Arun,

Thank you for reaching out to us. I was able to look at the working site that you mentioned, but would need more direction as to where the vpa part of it is. I was unable to look at your site as it was blocked for privacy reasons. I do see that when looking at this article what you have mentioned should work. Along with that we also would suggest trying and looking at one of our samples here and here .

Regards,

William Pescherine IMA SDK Team

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[Arun Kumar]

Hi Team, 

I checked and found I'm using the same way by sending the vpa=click macro hardcoded with my ad tag, but still it showing as vpa=auto as you can see here.

[IMA SDK]

Hi Arun,

 

I work along with William, allow me to assist you here.

 

The vpa parameter accepts constant value which indicates whether the ad starts through autoplay or click. Possible values are 'click' if the page waits for a user action or 'auto' if the video plays automatically. This parameter should be left unset if it is unknown.

 

However, I tested your test pages and I can confirm that I am seeing the same behavior as you. With this, allow me to share this to the rest of the team for further investigation. We will provide more information once we have the result of the investigation.

Regards,

Michael Angelo Legaspi IMA SDK Team

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[Arun Kumar]

Hi Team,

I'm also aware about this  "The vpa parameter accepts constant value which indicates whether the ad starts through autoplay or click. Possible values are 'click' if the page waits for a user action or 'auto' if the video plays automatically. This parameter should be left unset if it is unknown"

But as I shared a link with them, they also use the autoplay method, their player runs on autoplay, and in every ad request, it showing vpa=click.
Waiting for your answer that how can I set the vpa=auto to click in my case.

[Arun Kumar]

Hi Team,

It's been a long time, I'm waiting for your response, Have you guys find any solution regarding my issue? 

[IMA SDK]

Hi Arun,

Sorry for the delay in response. This function exists to meet Media Ratings Council guidelines, and so I needed to reach out to our contact there to confirm the intended use of the VPA signal, and the intended value.

In the case of an autoplay video, you should not be sending VPA=click at all, as that is an incorrect signal. The ad playback was not triggered manually by a user, so this is not an accurate description of the behavior that occurred. While it is possible to manually set this for the first ad in a playlist or VMAP, doing so may put your interactions at risk of being considered spammy by various measurement providers.

In the case of VMAP and Ad Playlists, there is no way to set each ad in the playlist to VPA=click, specifically because no ads in the playlist are initiated by a user interaction, except possibly the initial pre-roll ad. The link you sent as an example, appears to be making individual ad requests for each ad served, so as to be able to set this value manually. Once again, this appears to be an incorrect application of the VPA parameter, and is not an implementation that we can offer support for.

 

Thanks,

Greg Schoppe
IMA SDK Team

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[Arun Kumar]

As I can check some player service providers, who are also using Google for video ads, send the vpa=click with each and every ad request. If they are doing this, then it is something supported by google, or thy violate the policy.

Also can you please let me know, what is the effect or b/w vpa=click and vpa=autoplay, is it affecting ad serving.

[IMA SDK]

Hi Arun,

Manually manipulating the VPA parameter to send 'click' in instances where the ad is autoplayed is a violation of Media Ratings Council guidelines, rather than Google-specific guidelines. Google does not police the use of this parameter, because it is simply passed on to third parties and ad creatives. However, third-party ad hosts or measurement providers may flag such traffic as suspicious. In addition, misuse of this parameter will prevent your app from passing an MRC Approval audit.

VPA is not used by Google Ad Manager to effect ad serving, but may be used by third-party ad providers. Google has no control over how this parameter is used by third parties.

That said, the situation you are describing is not something we support, as violating Media Ratings Council guidelines is considered spammy behavior.