This blog offers a brief overview of key findings from the State of Audience Data Monetization 2025 report, in partnership with Digiday. To explore all the survey results and insights, download the full report here→
As the digital advertising landscape faces its most profound transformation in over a decade, one fact has emerged for publishers: first-party data, identity, and partnerships are the new currencies of monetization.
The once-dominant and available third-party signals are fading, and the fragmented nature of audience signals has made addressability more complex than ever. In this shifting environment, publishers are being asked to do more than serve content; they must own, structure, and activate their audience data with precision and accountability.
Why Identity Is Now Central
Historically, publishers operated on a principle: “If we publish great content, people will come.” That still holds true. But as signal loss deepens and AI steals traffic, quality content alone isn't enough to drive revenue. Advertisers increasingly demand proof of audience value, and that starts with the ability to recognize, organize, and activate users at scale.
This is where identity graphs come in. Built on first-party signals like subscriptions, email logins, and on-site behaviors, identity graphs allow publishers to construct a unified, durable understanding of their audiences, without relying on cookies or opaque third-party data.
According to the 2025 Digiday x Optable survey, 78% of publishers are already using or building an identity graph, underscoring the urgent need to take control of audience recognition and monetization.
“By taking control of identity yourself — and not relying on browser-based cookies —publishers are better set up for the future. You own more of the way you connect with partners.”
— Paul Bannister, Chief Strategy Officer, Raptive
Building a Future-Proof Foundation
At Optable, we believe publishers shouldn’t have to choose between scale and privacy, speed and safety, or automation and control. Our platform was purpose-built for this moment, empowering publishers to:
- Build composable, interoperable identity graphs that bridge online and offline data.
- Resolve identities in real time across browsers, devices, and environments using trusted alternatives like UID 2.0 and Yahoo ConnectID.
- Activate audiences where it counts, including DSPs, ad servers, CTV, clean room collaborations, and more.
And we don’t stop at identity. With Optable’s Agentic Collaboration framework, autonomous AI agents help publishers go from audience planning to campaign activation in minutes (not weeks) while preserving privacy and governance every step of the way.
Why It Matters Now
As third-party identifiers disappear and AI is reshaping how content is discovered and monetized, owning audience identity is how publishers stay relevant—ensuring addressability, powering AI-driven workflows, and maintaining direct advertiser relationships.
In today’s market, identity is not just infrastructure. It’s a publisher's leverage. And in a world reshaped by AI and privacy, it’s the only sustainable currency publishers can truly own.
Want to see how it could work for your team?
Reach out to our team to book a personalized walkthrough or see a demo of Optable in action. Contact our experts now or email sales@optable.co to start the conversation.
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