In-Play Advertising

StreamLayer’s In-Play Advertising system introduces relevant, contextual, and interactive ad units directly into live games and shows. These ads are incremental to traditional ad breaks and give media partners complete flexibility to control form, frequency, and placement.

By activating at moments of peak engagement, In-Play Ads capture audience attention and drive outcomes across the full funnel:

• Upper funnel – brand awareness, sweepstakes, sign-ups, first- and zero-party data collection.
• Mid funnel – promotions and calls-to-action linked to sponsors or campaigns.
• Bottom funnel – direct transactions such as merchandise sales, ticketing, or offers.

For developers, In-Play Ads are delivered through the StreamLayer SDK as lightweight overlays that integrate seamlessly with live content. The SDK handles rendering, interactivity, and consistent presentation, while StreamLayer’s multi-modal event trigger system ensures ads are timed precisely to the live experience.

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How It Works

Triggers

Ads can be activated by:

• Game Events via Live Stats APIs (touchdowns, 3-pointers, home runs)
• Broadcast Markers (SCTE-35)
• Ad Server Signals (VAST 4.0 / 4.2, SIMID)
• Time-based or Elapsed-time Triggers
• Viewer Interaction Triggers

Ad Decisioning with SGAI

• Server detects the trigger and requests an ad (e.g., VAST).
• Business logic, targeting, and personalization are applied.
• Final ad payload is sent to the SDK.
• SDK renders the ad in the appropriate display container.

Rendering

Ads are displayed as interactive overlays in multiple formats:

• Overlay – Semi-transparent ad container over video.
• L-Bar – Vertical + horizontal banner wrapping the video.
• Side Bar – Vertical container next to resized video.
• Sponsor Frame – Branded frame around slightly reduced video.
• Picture-in-Picture (PIP) – Main content minimized, ad dominates.
• Side-by-Side (SBS) – Split screen between ad and content.

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Supported Ad Units

Core Ad Units

1. Standard Ads – IAB 1:1, 2:1, 1:2 formats with interactive CTAs.
2. Shoppable Ads – Real-time product selection, checkout via Apple Pay/Google Pay, and dynamic inventory.
3. Prediction Ads – Sponsored outcome guesses with results revealed in-stream.
4. Trivia Ads – Sponsor-branded interactive questions with answer reveal.
5. Poll Ads – Quick voting and sentiment capture with sponsor branding.
6. Insight Ads – Contextual factoids or stats delivered with sponsor branding.

Notification-Based Ads

7. **Lower Third Ads **– 5:1 branded strip across the screen bottom.
8. Video Banners – 7:1 horizontal overlays for lightweight awareness.

CTV Takeover Units

9. Side-by-Side (SBS) – Split-screen with ad + content, ad audio prioritized.
10. Sponsor Frame – Main video shrinks into a branded frame.
11. Picture-in-Picture (PIP) – Video minimized while the ad dominates primary view.

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Developer Benefits

• Cross-platform (mobile, CTV, web).
• Lightweight integration (overlays, not stitched video).
• Interactive by default (CTAs, QR, device handoff).
• Context-aware (ads align with live content).

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In-Play Advertising transforms live moments into opportunities for contextual, interactive brand engagement.

StreamLayer’s ad units can be utilized to take users directly into the transactional path to capitalize on hot moments (buy limited edition merchandise, enter a sweepstakes, register for a sneaker drop, etc.) based on relevant game action.

StreamLayer ad units can also be used to deliver promo codes or QR codes that users can save for use to receive their discount or promotion at a later date (“Bonus Offer for new FanDuel Depositors” or “save this QR code to your wallet for a free cup of coffee with your next purchase”).