New AdMonsters and Intent IQ research reveals a critical gap in publisher monetization strategy. While 55% still rely on open exchanges for cookieless traffic, they admit it’s not working. See how top publishers, like Fandom, are bridging the gap with identity solutions and Deal ID packaging.
More than half of publishers report that they’re not effectively monetizing their cookieless traffic.
What are they doing instead?
Many are still dumping high-value traffic into the open exchange.
According to new research from AdMonsters and Intent IQ, 55% of publishers still rely on open exchanges to sell cookieless inventory. This occurs even when they know that inventory is often undervalued.
Even more revealing? Fifty-five percent of respondents also say they aren’t monetizing that traffic effectively.
Some publishers have wisened up, packaging audiences with Deal IDs to build addressable segments and working directly with buyers who are willing to pay for quality inventory.
So, if publishers want better revenue outcomes, why are they sitting around wishing and praying for better yield, instead of building smarter identity strategies?
Open exchanges weren’t built for premium audience packaging. They certainly weren’t designed to deliver precision for buyers or yield for publishers. And yet, that’s where the majority of cookie-restricted traffic still ends up.
That sounds like a major problem to me. And, it’s a missed opportunity for publishers.
Especially when there’s proof that it works.
There’s a Smarter Way to Monetize
Fandom, for example, partnered with Intent IQ to close the revenue gap for under-addressed segments, like iOS, Safari, and Firefox users. By making that audience more addressable—and more appealing to buyers—they saw revenue lift ranging from 55% to 140% across properties in 2024.
More recently, after leaning into identity resolution with Intent IQ’s Bid Enhancement solution, Fandom reported a 58% increase in fill rate and 26% lift in CPMs across their sites.
“We’ve leaned into testing a variety of ID solutions in the space, including Google, Amazon, and Intent IQ,” Christine Lee, Director of Data Partnerships at Fandom, told us last year at AdMonsters Publisher Forum Boston. “It’s difficult to compare apples to apples, but Intent IQ helped us close the performance gap on privacy-first audiences.”
That’s real dollars that most publishers are leaving on the table.
If Fandom can see up to 140% more revenue from under-addressed segments by shifting their approach, then continuing to rely on open exchange for cookieless traffic is actively costing others thousands—if not millions—in untapped earnings.
It’s one of the clearest examples we’ve seen of how cookieless monetization, when done right, delivers real performance without sacrificing privacy.
Why Aren’t More Publishers Doing This?
We asked publishers, “How important is the ability to create a Deal ID for PMP transactions?”
Only 29% said creating Deal IDs is very important. Which means too many are still undervaluing one of the most effective tools for monetizing their most elusive traffic.
What gives?
It’s not that publishers don’t know identity matters. In fact…
Cookieless Monetization: Lots of Intent, Very Little Execution
Seventy-four percent cite revenue optimization as their top reason for implementing identity solutions. Still, many lack confidence in measuring that impact. There’s a disconnect. It’s in the strategy and the tools.
Without shifting strategies—or knowing which ones actually work—it’s hard for publishers to make that intent actionable.
That’s why we created this research report and playbook with Intent IQ. Monetizing Audiences in Cookieless Environments: Publisher Insights, Strategies, and Best Practices for Leveraging Identity Solutions, pulls back the curtain on how publishers are rethinking identity.
The playbook focuses on how they’re thinking about segmentation, curation, and measurement—plus, what they want from identity partners now.
In it, you’ll find:
✅ Pro tips for packaging audiences for PMPs
✅ How teams are testing and measuring lift
✅ What publishers actually want from identity partners
✅ And what’s working right now for cookieless monetization
Want to see where your peers are getting real results—and where the opportunity is still wide open?
[Download the Playbook] Monetizing Audiences in Cookieless Environments