Demand-Side Platform (DSP)
Software used by advertisers to automatically purchase digital ad inventory across multiple ad exchanges through a single interface.
Definition
A demand-side platform is a software system that allows advertisers and agencies to purchase digital advertising inventory programmatically across multiple ad exchanges, networks, and publishers through one unified interface. DSPs use algorithms and data to evaluate available impressions in real time and decide which to buy based on the advertiser targeting criteria and budget parameters.
DSPs integrate with data management platforms to enrich bidding decisions with audience data, enabling advertisers to target specific user segments based on demographics, browsing behavior, purchase history, and other signals.
Why It Matters
DSPs eliminate the need for advertisers to negotiate individually with hundreds of publishers, dramatically improving efficiency and scale. They enable sophisticated targeting that would be impossible through manual media buying, including lookalike audiences, cross-device targeting, and frequency capping.
For businesses scaling their digital advertising, a DSP provides the infrastructure to manage campaigns across the entire programmatic ecosystem from a single dashboard.
Examples in Practice
A global consumer brand uses The Trade Desk DSP to manage campaigns across display, video, audio, and connected TV channels, all from one platform with unified reporting.
A digital agency sets up automated rules in their DSP to increase bids on impressions from users who have visited their client site in the past seven days, while decreasing bids on audiences that have shown low engagement.
A startup uses a self-serve DSP to launch their first programmatic campaign with a $5,000 monthly budget, targeting tech professionals in specific metro areas.