• by Tyler Loechner  @mp_tyler, August 4, 2014

Verve Mobile, a mobile ad network, is adopting newer ad technologies. The company on Monday announced the launch of a “programmatic direct” trading platform for location-based mobile advertising, dubbed Verve Direct.

“Programmatic direct” is a hybrid trading model that’s part automation and part direct deals. In a "programmatic direct" deal, the terms of a campaign are fleshed out between buyers and sellers directly, but the actual buying of ads is done programmatically so advertisers can use data to target specific audiences.

“Buyers using the platform are buying Verve’s location-dervied audiences and segments and we deliver those ads on direct designated publisher groups,” explained Tom MacIsaac, CEO of Verve. “That’s the default setup.”

The non-default setup is to use the new platform to buy exchange-based inventory via real-time bidding (RTB). Advertisers doing so would use Verve’s “Location Bidder,” which uses location as a substitute for cookies when targeting consumers.

“Buyers can also opt to deliver those same Verve location-based segments on exchange-based inventory,” MacIsaac continued. “Generally, buyers might do so for greater reach and/or lower price.” MacIsaac said that if advertisers use the platform to buy exchange-based inventory, they will only be able to bid on impressions that can be tied to a specific location.

Verve has been involved with programmatic ad platforms before, most notably via its partnership with Vistar Media. The two companies teamed in late 2013 to launch a programmatic trading platform for location-based marketers featuring digital-out-of-home (DOOH) inventory.