What is Prebid User ID Module?

Reading time: 2 minutes

With the demise of the third-party cookie fast approaching, and no direct 1:1 replacement possible given the host of privacy restrictions now in place, one of the best potential solutions for the void left by the third-party cookie is to integrate one or more of the identity solutions available via the Prebid user ID module. 

What is the Prebid user ID module?

From prebid.org: “The User ID module supports multiple ways of establishing pseudonymous IDs for users, which is an important way of increasing the value of header bidding. Instead of having several exchanges sync IDs with dozens of demand sources, a publisher can choose to integrate with any of a number of ID schemes.”

Some solutions, represented as “sub-modules”, generate secure tokens to represent personally identifiable information that a user has consented to sharing, such as an email address used to log in to a publisher’s website. Other solutions base their identifiers on first- or third-party cookies, or rely on vendor user graphs to join online and offline data, and facilitate targeting and measurement on a buyer’s campaigns. 

Prebid’s User ID Module will:

  • help publishers maximize revenue from their high-value audiences
  • allow publishers to configure one or more of the available vendor and open-source technology solutions that surface pseudonymous identifiers to bidders

The following five (5) user ID sub-modules are currently supported by Freestar:

  • PubCommon ID
  • Shared ID
  • IdentityLink (LiveRamp)
  • LiveIntent
  • Unified ID (The Trade Desk)

PubCommon ID and Shared ID do not require contracts with third-party vendors and may be enabled at any time by Freestar. If you have a partnership with one of the other vendors and would like to integrate their solution, please contact us. Freestar will implement the parameters required by that solution in our platform. 

If you would like to integrate with a Prebid User ID sub-module that isn’t listed above, please reach out to your Account Manager so we can discuss how to support your use case. 

What are the benefits?

  • Using user ID sub-modules future-proofs your identity strategy in environments where third-party cookies are not available.
  • Increased revenue when advertisers can target on the IDs you provide them with (when they can’t target on third-party cookies).
  • Freestar can help you test a sub-module on a percentage of your traffic and evaluate the impact it has on your site’s performance.
  • No additional third-party JavaScript to integrate on-page, reducing the impact on page performance to the minimal size of the Prebid modules.

Does Prebid user ID modules support passing hashed emails or other user information?

Some user ID modules support passing hashed emails or other user information as parameters in the Prebid ID module configuration. Depending on your ad ops solution, they may not support this so contact them directly for your use case.

Where can I find more information?

For more information, see the Prebid documentation: https://docs.prebid.org/dev-docs/modules/userId.html 

Recent Articles

Stay connected

Don't miss out on the latest news, events and special announcements.

By submitting this form, you agree that you've read and accept our Privacy Policy as well as to receive communications from HeaderBidding.com. You may unsubscribe at any time.

Related Articles

Stay connected

Don't miss out on the latest news, events and special announcements.

By submitting this form, you agree that you've read and accept our Privacy Policy as well as to receive communications from HeaderBidding.com. You may unsubscribe at any time.