Addressability takes centre stage as AI pressure mounts and privacy rules evolve

As the summer starts to wind down, the digital media ecosystem continues to experience wave after wave of structural shifts. From the relentless march of AI scrapers eroding traditional publisher business models to substantial privacy updates in both Europe and the US, the landscape demands swift, privacy-safe adaptation.

At the same time, a glaring execution gap has emerged: while data regulation tightens and publisher revenues fall, many marketers are still leaving critical campaign insights on the table.

Here are the key stories shaping the sector this August, and what they mean for now and the future of addressability.

AI scraping and falling referral traffic hit publisher revenues

A one-two punch came at digital publishers this month. According to a new report covered by Digiday, European media houses are being targeted significantly more frequently by AI scraping bots than their US counterparts, consuming content without driving traffic back. Compounding the challenge, The Media Leader reports a 4.6% decline in digital publisher revenues as traditional search and social referral traffic continues to plummet.

What it means for identity: Further proof that publishers have to pivot strategies away from a reliance on high-volume, referral-driven pageviews. Reach alone is not enough to guarantee revenues. As open web traffic continues to dwindle, publishers cannot afford to leave their inventory value to chance. Maximising yield on fewer, higher-quality impressions requires publisher-side identity infrastructure built on consented, real-user signals, as these users will become increasingly valuable. Proving to buyers that every impression is tied to a real, verifiable audience is now the primary lever for protecting media margins.

Global regulatory focus on data: EU AI Act enters compliance while New Jersey bans sensitive data sales

Regulatory momentum is accelerating on both sides of the Atlantic. IT Brief highlights how the implementation of the EU AI Act is pushing firms towards much stronger data governance and risk-management frameworks. Meanwhile, New Jersey has passed landmark legislation banning the sale of sensitive consumer data, adding another layer of compliance considerations to the US privacy landscape.

What it means for identity: The net is closing in on unscrupulous, third-party data practices and opaque scraping methods. Whether targeting digital campaigns or training AI models, deterministic data lineage and explicit consent are now non-negotiable. Adtech platforms and publishers must anchor their addressability strategies in telco-backed, privacy-first identity layers that respect a variety of regional and international laws, while guaranteeing scale without legal exposure.

The data execution gap: half of marketers fail to use performance insights

Despite widespread investment in adtech, as reported by Performance Marketing World, half of marketers are failing to use data insights to improve their campaigns. While brands collect vast amounts of information and current campaigns are subject to ever great levels of scrutiny for success and tangible ROI, a significant portion of media spend continues to run on broad-brush assumptions or unoptimised signals.

What it means for identity: Having data is meaningless if it cannot be activated easily and safely. In a market where every marketing budget is being asked to deliver and demonstrate clear returns, advertisers need identity solutions that bridge the gap between compliance and performance. Delivering simple, privacy-safe, real-time deterministic signals allows buyers to eliminate media wastage and optimise campaigns effectively without compromising on user privacy. Optimising based on data insights may increase the CPM in the short term, but the bigger win is that the eCPM will be driven down – delivering better efficiency and customer response all round.

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Navigating the shifting tides of publisher addressability, AI disruption, and strict privacy legislation shouldn’t require a compromise between scale, performance, and compliance. For more on our thoughts about the developments shaping the future of the open web, visit our website blog.