THE RUBICON PROJECT INTRODUCES CERTIFIED AD SPACE PROGRAM

Independent Verification Program Ensures Safety & Accuracy for Ad Networks Placing Ads on Websites

Los Angeles, CA April 8, 2008 — the Rubicon Project, a company with a mission to automate the large, yet highly inefficient advertising industry, has established the Certified Ad Space program. The program was created to satisfy ad network and advertiser needs for broader exposure and access to safe, high-quality website inventory, while ensuring that campaigns reach the intended audience and content. The program features a 21-point certification checklist and ratings system that has verified more than 10 billion ads and 725 websites for more than 62 ad networks to date.

“More than 5000 websites applied for our private beta since launching our ad network optimization service this past October. We chose 725 websites to participate in the program. Working with sites ranging from large well-known brands to small unknown websites we learned that ad inventory across these sites would be more valuable if they were independently classified and validated,” said Frank Addante, CEO and Founder. “The creation of this Certification program enables us to deliver thousands of pre-qualified websites to ad networks while eliminating the need for them to spend extensive time and resources verifying each site themselves.”

Advertisers are hesitant to spend more money with ad networks due to a lack of visibility and control over campaign placements and delivery. The problem stems from tracking and placement inefficiencies for ad networks and websites resulting in three main market repercussions:

* Content risk: not all content is brand safe
* Placement problems: ads often do not reach their intended audience or content
* Discrepancies: websites, ad networks and advertiser reporting show discrepancies up to 30%

The Certified Ad Space program ensures that campaigns appear exactly where they are supposed to (e.g. female-targeted sports related traffic), and as often as requested, so advertisers end up with precisely what they paid for. All Certified websites’ ad space is carefully screened, rated and classified using technology and human verification. A technological analysis and data matching technique is performed on every ad impression to verify source. The Certified Ad Space solution benefits ad networks and their advertisers as follows:

* Certified content and audience: assures brand safety
* Certified placement and targeting: delivers certainty that ads reach their intended audience
* Certified tracking and reporting: promises ad networks and their advertisers get what they pay for

“The Certified Ad Space program allows us to offer independent, third-party safety and quality assurances to our advertisers while reaching a broader range of sites, content and audience,” says Gabrielle Kramer, VP of Strategic Relations at Active Response Group. “Until now, there hasn’t been an independent third-party program to verify website ad space for ad networks and their advertisers. This move will give websites greater exposure and advertisers greater comfort when buying and selling through ad networks.”

The Rubicon Certified program also delivers value through increased revenue opportunity for websites. Certification ensures website publishers’ ad space becomes more visible and valuable to a wider audience of ad networks and ultimately, their advertisers. Small and mid-sized websites benefit from exposure to new networks that are near impossible to achieve on their own. Large branded publishers can be sure their carefully segmented ad space is bringing in top dollar once it’s been rated through the Rubicon Certified Ad Space program, without having to worry about channel conflict.

To learn more about certifying your website or to access certified ad space, visit: www.rubiconproject.com/certified.

About the Rubicon Project
the Rubicon Project is a group of industry-experienced, aggressive and passionate renegades dedicated to bringing a new level of efficiency to the fragmented Internet advertising space. The founders of the Rubicon Project shook up the online advertising industry in 1998 with L90/adMonitor, one of the most successful Internet advertising platforms before DoubleClick acquired it. the Rubicon Project’s web-based, self-serve solution gives any size website the most complete access to the total available advertising market and its smart matching technology does all the work to match each ad impression with the optimal money-making opportunity. the Rubicon Project is the new online advertising standard that makes it effortless for websites to generate the mad cash they’ve always dreamed of. And, it’s free to join. Websites looking to make more money while doing less work should visit: http://www.rubiconproject.com.