Start ’em, sit ’em: publisher priorities for H1 2026
BY ROB BEELER + CRAIG LESHEN, PRESIDENT OF ADOPS.COM
As Fantasy Football season has wrapped and we’re now enjoying the NFL playoffs, Rob is back in the “ad ops draft room” with Craig Leshen, President of adops•com, for the latest installment of Start ’em, Sit ’em – diving into H1 2026.
Previously, the conversation focused heavily on identity, first-party data, cookies, and the rapid evolution of contextual advertising, but for many publishers, these topics have moved from existential questions to table stakes.
Now, the focus is shifting again. The big question for the first half of 2026 is: how do publishers protect, productize, and scale what they already have in a world shaped by AI, automation, and fewer traditional clicks? Let’s dig in.
Rob: Ok, let’s talk about automation and AI in ad ops – because it feels like this one keeps bouncing between a Start ’em and Sit ’em every time we talk. Where does it really land heading into H1?
Craig: Good to be back, Rob. You’re right, and honestly, it’s why I’ve been encouraging publishers to think about automation and AI through a very explicit Start ’em, Sit ’em lens, especially when aligning ops teams and executive leadership.
Ahead of 2025, most publishers planned to increase their investment in AI and automation, and we’ve seen that play out. They’ve shared that they’ve reduced time spent on repetitive ops tasks, reporting and troubleshooting, accelerated QA, and improved pacing checks – whether through the use of AI or other technology, products, or via partner companies. Those are clear Start ’ems, and if you’re not applying AI, other automation, and/or management solutions there yet, you’re leaving easy efficiency wins on the table.
Where it becomes a Sit ’em is when publishers feel pressure to make sweeping, long-term bets based on where AI might go. The technology is evolving incredibly fast, and the messaging around it can change overnight – particularly as major players like Google, or SSP partners, adjust their roadmaps.
Making significant changes based on technology “x” might be great now, but when technology “y” comes out in a few months, you might have to revamp all the work you did to accommodate the newer, better tech. Major shifts today can create confusion or misalignment six months from now. Be careful. Big ships make adjustments to their trajectories, but they don’t make 90+ degree turns on a dime.
Rob: Ok, let’s get into sell-side decisioning specifically. It’s a hot topic, but what should publishers actually be doing?
Craig: Agentic AI is now a core player on the field on the sell side when it comes to programmatic. It’s not necessarily your quarterback, or your superstar wide receiver, but it plays a key role. Sell-side decisioning compresses the traditional 200-millisecond programmatic auction into the first 10 milliseconds. Publishers can pre-filter bids for viewability, brand safety, or other KPIs before the DSP even sees them. The sell side is uniquely positioned because exchanges see the ‘whole web’ and can apply logic upstream, delivering cleaner auctions, higher-quality impressions, and lower overhead. Publishers, and their partners, as applicable, need to be paying attention to this, especially if you have substantial inventory allocated towards programmatic dollars.
Rob: That sounds like a solid Start ’em. What else should you have on your H1 Starting roster?
Craig: Without a doubt – publishers need to start thinking about “the clickless era.” We’re all hearing about it. We’re all talking about it. A lot of publishers are seeing it firsthand, at least in some way. Traffic alone is no longer the safety net it once was. Generative AI, search changes, and content reuse mean publishers need multiple strategies running in parallel. Things to consider are:
Collective licensing models
Running in-house AI experiments to understand how audiences encounter generative answers
Putting real effort into self-protection, e.g. bot monitoring, blocking illegitimate usage, and tightening terms of use
Diversifying revenue streams
Establishing tactical partnerships with supply-side partners who can help take inventory further
Consolidating your programmatic stack, or working with a partner who can manage it for you
This isn’t about panic – it’s about awareness and control. If you don’t understand how your content is being used, you can’t protect or monetize it.
Rob: Let’s talk about the last two points in the list because to me, they come under the umbrella of supply path optimization, which is really important in the clickless era. What are the main types of partnerships and consolidation you’re seeing right now?
Craig: Absolutely – supply path optimization is a solid Start ’em for H1 2026. Publishers are under pressure to simplify their programmatic stacks and improve transparency. We’ve seen major shifts from the buy side that force publishers to rethink how many hops their inventory takes before it reaches demand. Fewer hops means fewer hands in the cookie jar.
The publishers who do best here are the ones willing to consolidate intelligently. This year we’ve helped our publisher clients with a number of approaches, including acquisition and network building; joint effort and rebranding; divestiture and outsourcing; and restructure and spin-off.
Rob: You also mentioned diversification. Where should publishers actually be placing their bets?
Craig: To be clear, diversification is ALWAYS a Start ‘em. We started off as an ad trafficking company back in 2003 – and we’ve evolved with the industry. We went from one revenue stream to a dozen+. Diversification got us to where we are today.
For publishers, first up, I’d say, if you’re not already doing this, apply at least some of your focus on mobile and video – more if possible. Mobile is the dominant user context now, and a massive share of ad spend flows through video and apps. Publishers need mobile-first layouts, lighter pages, and video or interactive formats that don’t wreck UX or Core Web Vitals.
Second, think about how to productize your content: for instance, in-depth content for subscriptions; intent content (i.e. contextually-relevant) for affiliate and commerce; and reach content (i.e. top-of-funnel) for sponsorship.
The smartest publishers are identifying multiple streams that can support layered revenue – ads, subs, affiliate, events, communities etc. Think along the lines of H1 being about stabilizing ops and pricing, so those bundles can be prototyped in H2.
Rob: Any other Start ‘ems, before we move onto the longer-term, more strategic plays?
Craig: Yes, retail media. It has grown faster than even the experts predicted, and a large amount of retail media’s ad spend is expected to take place online in the coming years, despite most sales happening in physical stores. At adops•com, more and more retailers are seeking our help to build programs as they themselves become media owners.
Also, first-party audience data. More and more products and GAM360 functionality are on the horizon. If you’re a publisher utilizing GAM360, you need to be paying attention to this – there’s great stuff in the works.
Rob: Alright, let’s move onto Sit ‘ems – things that are important but not urgent. Who or what is warming the bench for now?
Craig: First up, curation. It was the buzzword coming out of 2024, and one year on, most publishers have implemented some form of curation. But if you haven’t, you don’t need to over-invest in H1 2026. As I said, developing and monetizing your first-party audience data is something you should be all over. It’s what makes your inventory unique, separates your impressions from others, and makes advertisers pay attention.
However, last year every vendor you spoke with – and there were a bazillion of them – had a curation play they were touting, and while the category isn’t going away by any means, the playing field has narrowed to a small pool who consistently deliver real revenue lift. Data from Future and Adomik showed curation can drive 25% YoY revenue growth and 1.5x higher CPMs, but results vary by publisher and SSP.
By all means, put a curation strategy in place, but first make sure you have a solid first-party audience strategy in place.
Rob: Ok great. What’s your next Sit ‘em?
Craig: Next up, we need to talk about context protocols, taxonomies and standards. This is an area moving quickly, but publishers should resist the urge to embed every new product immediately.
MCP (from Anthropic), AdCP (from Scope 3 et al), and UCP (from IAB Tech Lab) are promising frameworks for giving agents a common language to negotiate campaigns, activate data, and generate AI-powered creatives, but you don’t necessarily need to implement them all at the same time.
Meanwhile, taxonomies such as IAB Tech Lab’s Ad Creative ID Framework (ACIF), Deals API, Content Taxonomy and Audience Taxonomy all help standardize processes, but think of them as foundational plumbing rather than urgent H1 plays.
The key takeaway: these tools let publishers scale direct selling, maintain transparency, and preserve unique inventory value. But they require guardrails and careful integration.
We also just mentioned plumbing. People often refer to ad ops as the plumbing for publishers. In the same way, context protocols help build a strong foundation, but this technology takes time to develop. You need to evaluate which is best for you before implementing.
Rob: Right. And you don’t install the plumbing only to rip open the walls every year to change the pipes; just like you wouldn’t rip out your ad operations, ad server, ad stack, etc, every year.
Craig: Exactly. Major industry shifts are happening, so pay attention now, but don’t get stuck in the weeds of implementing a variety of solutions in H1.
Rob: And lastly, direct-sold advertising. Are we seeing a comeback?
Craig: YES! You got it. Direct-sold is back, and publishers are welcoming it with open arms. After years of programmatic dominance, many publishers are reassessing revenue mixes, and high-quality direct deals remain the most stable source of revenue for many. In short, this year the strategy should focus on measured, high-value plays rather than sheer volume.
Rob: So what’s the big takeaway heading into 2026?
Craig: H1 2026 is about starting the plays that protect and compound value:
Streamlining and optimizing via AI or other technology, products, or partner companies
Sell-side decisioning
Smarter partnerships (where partners bring expertise and technology to the table to help you grow)
Focused diversification
H2 is where you refine, scale, and experiment. Just like Fantasy Football, you don’t win by starting every player-of-the-moment and hoping they pan out. You win by starting players who are consistent performers, stashing players on your bench to use later, and knowing when to make roster adjustments. That takes knowledge and experience, both of which enable you to know when to make moves and when to be patient.
Rob: So there you have it – the early-season “ad ops draft board” for 2026. Some Start ’ems you can’t afford to leave on the bench, and some Sit ’ems worth watching as the season unfolds. As always, the challenge isn’t knowing what could work – it’s knowing what to play now.
Craig: Exactly. Publishers that focus on the fundamentals in H1 – while keeping a disciplined eye on what’s coming next – will be best positioned to win in 2026.
To learn more about how a strategic partner like adops•com can help you evaluate your Start ’ems, manage your Sit ’ems, and build a roster that performs all season long, connect with Craig and the team.
Source: https://www.beeler.tech/2026/01/16/start-em-sit-em-publisher-priorities-for-h1-2026/
