# Static assets on live With static assets, each break points directly at its ad creatives: video or image files that you host on your own CDN. No ad server is involved — the SDK fetches the creative from the URL on the break and plays it when the break starts. Use this workflow on live streams for direct-sold campaigns, sponsorships, promos, and branded overlays where you already know which creative to show. | | Static assets on live | | -------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------ | | Delivery mode | Server-guided (SGAI) | | Ad decisioning | None: the break names the creative | | Break creation | Scheduled, punched, or detected from the ad markers in your stream | | Your app needs | The OptiView Ads SDK for your platform; nothing else | ## Before you start * A [live channel](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/workflows/live.md#set-up-a-live-channel). The examples use the `wallclock` timebase. * The OptiView Ads SDK in your app: [Web](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/player-integration/optiview-ads-sdk/web.md), [Android](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/player-integration/optiview-ads-sdk/android.md), [iOS](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/player-integration/optiview-ads-sdk/ios.md), or [React Native](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/player-integration/optiview-ads-sdk/react-native.md). Static assets need no ad server, no Google Ad Manager account, and no extra configuration in the app. * Your creatives on a CDN that the viewers' devices can reach. ## Schedule a break A static asset sets `type` to `static` and `uri` to the URL of the creative. On a `wallclock` channel, `start` is the UTC moment in your stream when the break begins: ```bash curl -X POST 'https://us.ads.optiview.dolby.com/api/v1/channels//breaks' \ -u "$ADS_API_KEY:$ADS_API_SECRET" \ -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \ -H 'X-Org-ID: ' \ -d '{ "start": "2026-07-16T12:15:00.000Z", "duration": 30, "variant": { "format": "single", "assets": [ { "type": "static", "mediaType": "video", "mimeType": "application/x-mpegurl", "uri": "https://cdn.example.com/ads/spot.m3u8", "interaction": { "clickThrough": "https://www.example.com/offer" } } ] } }' ``` The `uri` can also be a list of URLs targeted per device type. See [Static assets](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/breaks.md#static-assets) and [Asset URI targeting](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/breaks.md#asset-uri-targeting) for the full asset model. ### Other ways to create the break * **Punch it live.** Create the break without a `start`, and [punch](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/breaks.md#break-punching) it when the moment comes, for example from your production control room. * **Detect it.** Add your stream as an [origin](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/origins.md) and configure a [marker rule](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/marker-detection.md) whose [template](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/templates.md) holds the static assets. Every matching ad marker in the stream, such as an SCTE-35 signal, becomes a break. * **Trigger it on a player event.** Set `start` to `{ "type": "event", "event": "start" }` for a pre-roll when the viewer tunes in, `"pause"` for a pause ad, or `"end"` for a post-roll. See [Event based triggers](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/breaks.md#event-based-triggers). ## How the break plays * The SDK receives the break through the channel's [Break Manifest](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/break-manifest.md) shortly before it starts, within the channel's [ad prefetch window](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/channels.md#ad-prefetch-window), and loads the creative ahead of time so the ad starts without delay. * Viewers behind the live edge, in the [DVR window](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/channels.md#dvr-window), play the break when their playhead reaches it. * Static assets always play server-guided. On a channel that steers some devices to [SSAI](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/workflows.md#hybrid-ad-insertion-sgai-and-ssai), those devices still play the static event-triggered breaks — pre-roll, pause, and post-roll — but not the breaks on the timeline. ## Supported layouts Static assets work in every [layout](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/breaks.md#layouts): | Layout | Static asset | | --------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Single | A video that replaces the content. | | Double box | A video next to your content, with an image or video `companion` behind both. | | L-shape ad | A video, with an image or video `companion` that fills the L-shaped backdrop. | | L-shape content | An image that fills the L-shaped backdrop while your content keeps playing. | | Overlay | An image or video on top of your content. | An image stays on screen for the asset's `duration`, or for the break's `duration` when the asset has none. Static assets can also be used for [pause ads](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/breaks.md#pause): an image, or a progressive MP4 video that plays muted, shown while the viewer is paused. ## Creative formats * **HLS (`.m3u8`)** is the recommended format for video creatives on every platform. On connected TVs in particular, the SDK can load an HLS creative ahead of the break, so the ad starts faster. * **Progressive MP4** also works. On Web, the SDK plays MP4 creatives through the browser's own video element. * **Images** are used for overlays, companions, L-shape backdrops, and pause ads. Set `mimeType` on the asset when you know it. The SDK then knows upfront how to play the creative, instead of having to find out, which makes ad preparation faster. ## Tracking and reporting The SDK reports an OptiView Ads [impression](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/how-to-guides/ad-impressions.md) for every break it presents, and emits ad events — such as the start and end of each break and ad — that your app can listen to. See the API reference of your platform for the full list of events. Static assets carry no third-party tracking URLs. If an advertiser needs to count impressions in their own ad server, deliver the creative through a [VAST tag](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/workflows/live/vast.md) instead: the VAST response carries the advertiser's tracking URLs, which are fired while the ad plays. ## Troubleshooting * **The break does not play.** Check that the channel's [Break Manifest](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/break-manifest.md) contains the break, and that the creative URL is publicly reachable. * **Web: the creative fails to load.** The SDK downloads HLS creatives with HTTP requests from your page, so your CDN must allow cross-origin requests (CORS) from your app's origin. * **A creative cannot be played.** The SDK emits an `aderror` event for the asset, continues with the next asset in the break if there is one, and otherwise returns to your content. ## Related resources | Resource | Description | | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------- | | [Live](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/workflows/live.md) | Live channels: timebase, break creation, and delivery modes. | | [Breaks](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/breaks.md) | Layouts, variants, controls, and the asset model. | | [Templates](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/concepts/templates.md) | Store a break with its static assets once, and reuse it. | | [Your ad server (VAST) on live](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/workflows/live/vast.md) | Let your ad server decide which creative to play. | | [Static assets on VOD](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/workflows/vod/static-assets.md) | The same workflow for on-demand assets. | | [Ad impression tracking](https://optiview.dolby.com/docs/ads/how-to-guides/ad-impressions.md) | How OptiView Ads counts the breaks presented to your viewers. |