Mobile ad marketplace Millennial Media announced that it will offer its clients a guarantee of 100% viewability for in-app mobile ad campaigns. This comes as the industry is “desperately” seeking guidelines for viewability. It’s a bold move for sure.

The Media Rating Council announced last week that it has issued interim guidance for how to proceed with measuring and transacting around mobile viewability. This applies to the “Opportunity to See” an ad in a mobile web browser or a mobile app.

READ: Here’s How To Measure Mobile Ad Viewability

“In order to deliver on this first of its kind initiative, the company is partnering with Integral Ad Science, the only at-scale vendor that can currently measure in-app viewability,” a spokesperson for Millennial Media tells WebProNews. “The guarantee will be fulfilled by participating Millennial Media clients only being billed once their ad is verified viewable by Integral Ad Science.”

“This move is a significant step in Millennial Media’s ongoing commitment to make digital advertising more accountable, as well as helping the industry to spearhead well defined and commonly accepted standards around viewability (by continuing to work together with partners such as Integral Ad Science, as well as the Interactive Advertising Bureau and Media Rating Council),” the spokesperson adds.

READ: A Clearer Look At Mobile Ad Viewability

“The mobile ad ecosystem is desperately seeking guidelines around viewability,” said Michael Barrett, President & CEO at Millennial Media and an IAB Board Member. “Today, we are choosing the highest standard possible by offering a 100% in-app viewability guarantee. We have selected Integral Ad Science as our measurement partner because they are the only at-scale vendor that can currently measure in-app viewability. We will continue to partner closely with the MRC, IAB, and the mobile ad ecosystem to define industry-wide standards around viewability. We are committed to becoming the largest mobile marketplace that provides 100% viewable, brand safe, and fraud free impressions.”

Integral Ad Science recently completed an audit of the Millennial network, and both companies have been working with publishers on technical changes that improve viewability. It must be going well if they’re making a 100% guarantee.

Millennial defines viewability as 100% of the ad being in view for at least one second. The guarantee applies to in-app banner ads and interstitials Additional formats may be added later.

At first, the guarantee will only be applied to campaigns running on inventory originating in the U.S. and U.K. but a global rollout is planned for later this year. It dos not apply to inventory purchased programmatically, but Millennial is also working with Integral Ad Science to enable it in the Millennial Media Exchange.

You can learn more about the guarantee on this FAQ page.

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Image via Millennial Media