The Trade Desk

Last updated
The Trade Desk, Inc.
Company type Public
Industry
Founded2009;15 years ago (2009)
Founders
Headquarters Ventura, California, U.S.
Key people
  • Jeff Green (CEO)
  • Dave Pickles (CTO)
Products
  • Digital advertising
  • media buying
RevenueIncrease2.svg US$1.95 billion (2023)
Increase2.svg US$200 million (2023)
Increase2.svg US$179 million (2023)
Total assets Increase2.svg US$4.89 billion (2023)
Total equity Increase2.svg US$2.16 billion (2023)
Number of employees
3,115 (2023)
Website thetradedesk.com
Footnotes /references
[1]

The Trade Desk, Inc. (stylized as theTradeDesk) is an American multinational technology company that specializes in real-time programmatic marketing automation technologies, products, and services, designed to personalize digital content delivery to users.

Contents

The Trade Desk is headquartered in Ventura, California. It is the largest independent demand-side platform in the world, competing against DoubleClick by Google, Facebook Ads, and others. [2] [3] Unlike traditional marketing, programmatic marketing is operated by real-time, split-second decisions based on user identity, device information, and other data points. It enables highly personalized consumer experiences, and improves return-on-investment for companies and advertisers. [4] Demand-side platforms, like The Trade Desk, work with ad exchanges to deliver such tailored digital experiences.

The company continued to grow since its founding in 2009. As of 2021, it offers a self-service publishing platform for brands & advertisers, a data management platform for advanced analytics & segmentation, and enterprise APIs that enable advanced integrations. It has over 225 partners worldwide, and is responsible for delivering personalized content on Spotify and more. [5]

The Trade Desk has been recognized for its omni-channel approach to programmatic marketing automation, with strong data analytics capabilities, fast response-times, and support for various connected devices, online platforms, and media formats. It reported a 95% customer retention rate for 27 straight quarters in 2020, and an annual revenue of US$836 million in the same year. [6]

The firm currently employs around 3,100 people in 25 office locations worldwide. [1] [7] It was ranked among the 100 Best Medium Workplaces by Fortune in 2018, and have been continually named in the list since then. [8]

History

Early years

The Trade Desk was co-founded in 2009 by Jeff Green and David Pickles. [9] [10] They met at Microsoft after it had acquired Green's real-time digital advertising auction firm, AdECN, in 2007. [10] [11] By 2012, the company was included as an alpha partner in Facebook’s launch of the real-time bidding (RTB) advertising platform, Facebook Exchange. [12]

In 2015, The Trade Desk was named among the top 10 of America’s Most Promising Companies by Forbes . Founders Green and Pickles were also named as Ernst & Young Entrepreneurs of The Year 2015 in the Greater Los Angeles region. [12] [13]

Initial public offering

On September 21, 2016, The Trade Desk became a public company with an $18 offering price. The company's opening day was reported as a "vote of confidence for the demand-side platform, whose S1 filing revealed healthy financials: Triple digit revenue growth and profitability — rare in a sector that is seeing much of its growth chomped away by the duopoly Google and Facebook." [14] The company continued to experience tremendous growth, and reached a market cap of US$40 billion by 2021.

Post-IPO growth

In 2017, The Trade Desk integrated connected TV buying and measurement directly into its platform; [15] acquired marketing insights firm AdBrain; [16] and partnered with fraud prevention firm White Ops to block fraudulent ad traffic prior to purchase. [15] [17] The firm also improved transparency in programmatic buying by enabling buyers to see all selling or reselling parties to a bid request. [18]

In 2018, the firm began investing heavily into the Asia Pacific region with the launch of its programmatic ad buying platform in China, giving access to Chinese media companies, such as Alibaba, Tencent and Baidu Exchange Services. [19] [20] It also launched new AI tools: an AI forecasting engine named Koa, a new user interface, new tools for mapping strategies called The Trade Desk Planner, and a proprietary global user identity resolution tool called Unified ID. [21] [22]

In 2019, Amazon opened connected TV (CTV) Apps integrated with Amazon Publisher Services, enabling the purchase of ad inventory for third-party TV content provider The Trade Desk, through Amazon Fire TV devices. [23]

In September 2019, The Trade Desk launched an advertising campaign, "Media for Humankind", to position itself as a "more transparent digital advertising" [24] alternative to Google and Facebook. [25] [26]

In mid-2020, Unified ID 2.0 (UID 2.0) launched as a second iteration to leverage a post-cookie internet using encrypted email and phone number data to create a secure identity standard. [27] The identity resolution software was adopted by Disney [28] and Paramount, [29] as well as by major advertisers, including Procter & Gamble and Unilever. [30] In early 2022, The Trade Desk launched OpenPath, granting advertisers direct access to its premium digital advertising inventory. [31] Publishers using OpenPath include Conde Nast, Reuters and The Washington Post. [32]

In March 2024, NBCUniversal announced that its broadcast content for the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics would be available, in partnership with The Trade Desk, to online automated programmatic marketers, for the first time. [33] [34]

The company has consistently been named to annual lists by, among others, Fortune magazine, [35] and was included with the Forbes Global 2000 in 2022. [36]

In May 2024, Netflix announced its first expansion of its advertising partnerships to include The Trade Desk, Magnite and Google DV360. [37]

Financials

The Trade Desk raised $2.5 million of venture capital in March, 2010. Investors included venture capital firms Founder Collective and IA Ventures, and angel investors Jerry Neumann and Josh Stylman. [38]

The Trade Desk went public on September 21, 2016, [39] with an initial stock price of $18.00; its IPO closing market price gained to $30.10 per share. [40]

In 2017, revenue rose 52 percent to $308 million, [9] then rose to $477 million in 2018. [19] In 2019, third-quarter revenue was reported as $164 million, attributed to the growth of connected TV advertising. [41]

On June 17, 2021, the company completed its 10–1 stock split, with a trading price of $68. [42]

The Trade Desk finished 2022 with a record total spent on the platform of $7.8 billion, [43] and annual revenue of over $1.5 billion. [44]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 "The Trade Desk, Inc. 2023 Annual Report (Form 10-K)". U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. 15 February 2024.
  2. ↑ FED. "Forrester". Forrester. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  3. ↑ Frankenfield, Joseph (August 15, 2018). "Ad Tech Firm Poised to Surge 50%" . Retrieved November 18, 2018.
  4. ↑ Panel®, Expert. "Council Post: Where 2022 Ad Spend Is Going (And How To Get Ahead Of The Trends)". Forbes. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  5. ↑ "The Trade Desk Partners with Spotify and More for Audio Programmatic – Lovely Mobile News" . Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  6. ↑ "Trade Desk Revenue 2015-2021 | TTD". www.macrotrends.net. Retrieved 2022-02-16.
  7. ↑ "Office Locations | The Trade Desk". www.thetradedesk.com. Retrieved 2023-02-15.
  8. ↑ "100 Best Medium Workplaces". Fortune. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
  9. 1 2 Tom Metcalf (31 August 2018). "Ad Man Inspired by Goldman Becomes a Billionaire". Bloomberg.com. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
  10. 1 2 Chowdhry, Amit. "How Jeff Green Took The Trade Desk From A Simple Idea To A Programmatic Ad Giant". Forbes. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
  11. ↑ Martinez, Arlene (July 21, 2019). "Ventura's The Trade Desk returns to where it all started". Ventura County Star. Retrieved 2019-07-22.
  12. 1 2 "The Trade Desk Inc. (TTD), Interview with Jeff Green, CEO". Nasdaq. November 8, 2016. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
  13. ↑ "The Trade Desk, Inc". UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION. February 22, 2019. Retrieved 2019-11-20.
  14. ↑ O'Reilly, Lara (September 21, 2016). "Trade Desk CEO hopes IPO will rebuild 'trust' between ad tech companies and Wall Street". Business Insider. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
  15. 1 2 Heine, Christopher (September 21, 2017). "The Trade Desk's New Product Helps Advertisers Reach Consumers on TV and Digital" . Retrieved November 22, 2019.
  16. ↑ "The Trade Desk acquires the assets of Adbrain Ltd". Reuters. October 25, 2017. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
  17. ↑ Shields, Ronan (September 1, 2017). "The Trade Desk and White Ops ink deal to block fraudulent traffic before it is bought". The Drum. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
  18. ↑ "Trade Desk Clashes With Google Over Transparency Initiative". AdExchange. July 22, 2019. Retrieved November 22, 2019.
  19. 1 2 Graham, Megan (May 31, 2019). "This US ad tech company is cracking into the Chinese market, and Wall Street loves it" . Retrieved November 18, 2019.
  20. ↑ Jhonsa, Eric (March 26, 2019). "The Trade Desk Remains a Pretty Unique Story – Tech Check" . Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  21. ↑ Shields, Ronan (May 21, 2019). "How The Trade Desk Is Integrating With Prebid to Boost Its Unified ID" . Retrieved November 18, 2018.
  22. ↑ "Our industry needs a common cookie language. Let's talk" . Retrieved November 22, 2019.
  23. ↑ Graham, Megan (July 26, 2019). "The Trade Desk hits 52-week high on deal to sell video ads on Amazon Fire TV" . Retrieved November 20, 2019.
  24. ↑ Murphy, Paige (September 24, 2019). "The Trade Desk takes aim at Google and Facebook in a new campaign". AdNews. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
  25. ↑ Wodinsky, Shoshana (September 26, 2019). "The Trade Desk Focuses on People, Not Programmatic in Latest Campaign". AdWeek. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
  26. ↑ Graham, Megan (September 26, 2019). "The Trade Desk's new ad campaign pokes Google and Facebook in the ribs". AdWeek. Retrieved November 23, 2019.
  27. ↑ "The Trade Desk Is Building Version 2.0 of Its Unified ID" AdWeek
  28. ↑ "Unilever first to test Disney’s identity integration with Trade Desk" Marketing Dive
  29. ↑ "Paramount Enables Unified ID 2.0 for Connected TV Ad Sales" NextTV
  30. ↑ "Procter & Gamble Is Doing The Unified ID 2.0 Thing" AdExchanger
  31. ↑ "SPO Is Evolving Thanks To Direct Publisher Connections And A Push For Sustainability" AdExchanger
  32. ↑ "Trade Desk to counter Google's ad grip with tool for publishers" Reuters
  33. ↑ "NBCUniversal Leans Into AI In Upfront Ad Sales Push". Yahoo. March 20, 2024. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
  34. ↑ "The 'crème de la crème': 2024 Paris Olympics goes programmatic on Peacock". The Current. March 20, 2024. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
  35. ↑ "The Trade Desk" Fortune
  36. ↑ "Trade Desk" Forbes
  37. ↑ "Netflix Says Ad Tier Has 40M Users, Plans to Bring Ad Tech In-House in Shift From Microsoft" Hollywood Reporter. May 15, 2024
  38. ↑ "The Trade Desk CEO Green Announces Funding And Investors". AdExchanger. March 23, 2010. Retrieved April 30, 2020.
  39. ↑ O'Reilly, Lara (September 15, 2016). "Trade Desk CEO hopes IPO will rebuild 'trust' between ad tech companies and Wall Street". Business Insider. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  40. ↑ "UNITED STATES SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Form 10-K". SEC.gov. February 16, 2017. pp. 46, 88. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  41. ↑ Sleffo, George P. (November 7, 2019). "THE TRADE DESK BETS BIG ON CONNECTED TV AS REVENUE JUMPS 38 PERCENT". Ad Age. Retrieved November 15, 2019.
  42. ↑ "The Trade Desk Announces a Ten-for-One Stock Split". nasdaq.com (Press release). 10 May 2021.
  43. ↑ "The Trade Desk’s bumper quarter has some important caveats" DIGIDAY
  44. ↑ "Trade Desk Revenue 2015-2023" Macrotrends
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