Will Cryptocurrencies Change Digital Publishing?

An interview with:
Ted Dhanik
CEO, Co-Founder
engage:BDR

Publishers typically have to wait a few months before they get paid for the ad impressions they deliver to their users. Ted Dhanik, CEO and co-founder of ad tech firm engage:BDR, spoke to eMarketer’s Ross Benes about how publishers can use cryptocurrencies to get paid faster.

eMarketer:

How would a publisher benefit from using cryptocurrencies in its transactions with advertisers?

Ted Dhanik:

After an ad was served, they could potentially get paid through blockchain technology and have access to a cryptocurrency that would be redeemable on an exchange immediately. Instead of waiting to invoice and be paid 30, 60, 90, or even 190 days out by the buyer, the [cryptocurrency exchange] intermediary would issue a coin instead in real time.

eMarketer:

Isn’t that sort of risky for the publisher?

Ted Dhanik:

It’s the intermediary issuing the coin that takes the risk. Their incentive for doing this is to get access to more publishers that they didn’t have access to.

eMarketer:

What's the biggest challenge to getting publishers to use cryptocurrencies?

Ted Dhanik:

The volatility and the valuation of the prices of the coins dropping and changing every day.

eMarketer:

The scale and volatility issues scare a lot of people away from cryptocurrencies, but you seem bullish about them. Why do you feel that way?

Ted Dhanik:

There’s a lot of value around cryptocurrencies. It’s not just about the payments. It’s also about fraud detection.

Interview conducted on August 29, 2018

"Behind the Numbers" Podcast