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Version: v2

Google Ad Manager on VOD

With Google Ad Manager 360, Google decides which ads fill the breaks of your on-demand assets. Google assembles the ads for each break into a pod, and the pod plays when the viewer reaches the break. Use this workflow when you sell your VOD inventory through Google Ad Manager 360, and to reach platforms that need server-side ad insertion.

Google Ad Manager on VOD
Delivery modeServer-guided (SGAI), server-side (SSAI), or both
Ad decisioningGoogle Ad Manager, per viewer session
Break creationScheduled at positions in the asset, or detected from the ad markers in it
Your app needsThe OptiView Ads SDK; on Web also Google's IMA DAI SDK

Contact your Dolby OptiView account team to enable Google Ad Manager on your VOD channels.

Choose a delivery mode​

Delivery modeHow it worksUse it for
Server-guidedGoogle decisions the pods; the SDK inserts them at the break positions of your untouched asset.Web, mobile, and most connected TV apps. Required for the double box, L-shape, and overlay layouts.
Server-sideGoogle stitches the ads for the asset's breaks into the on-demand stream, and the player plays the stitched asset.Platforms where a client-side SDK is not an option, such as Roku and older connected TV devices.

One channel can serve both: the channel steers the delivery mode per device, and the SDK picks it up from the Break Manifest.

Before you start​

Schedule a break​

A Google break carries a vendor asset with vendor set to gam and vendorParameters.type set to pod. Google performs the decisioning, so the asset needs no URI. On a mediatime channel, start is the position in the asset, in seconds:

curl -X POST 'https://us.ads.optiview.dolby.com/api/v1/channels/<channel-id>/breaks' \
  -u "$ADS_API_KEY:$ADS_API_SECRET" \
  -H 'Content-Type: application/json' \
  -H 'X-Org-ID: <org-id>' \
  -d '{
    "start": 600,
    "duration": 60,
    "controls": { "snapback": true },
    "variant": {
      "format": "single",
      "assets": [
        {
          "type": "vendor",
          "vendor": "gam",
          "vendorParameters": { "type": "pod" },
          "assetParameters": {
            "description_url": "https://www.example.com/movies/the-big-match.html",
            "plcmt": "1"
          }
        }
      ]
    }
  }'

Detect the breaks​

Instead of scheduling every break, add the asset as an origin and configure a marker rule whose template holds the Google vendor asset. Every matching ad marker in the asset becomes a break at its position.

How the break plays​

  • Server-guided: the SDK fetches the channel's Break Manifest once when the session starts, and inserts Google's pods at the break positions as the viewer reaches them.
  • Server-side: Google stitches the ads into the asset, and the player plays the stitched stream.
  • Ads are decisioned per viewer session rather than per break moment, because every viewer watches from their own position: there is no audience-wide peak at a break start.
  • With snapback, a viewer who seeks past a break is taken back to the break first. See Seeking and snapback.

What your app needs​

The SDK reads the Google settings — your network code and the channel's Google asset key — from the channel's Break Manifest, and starts the Google stream session automatically when the session starts. You do not configure them in the app, so your app and the backend always agree on which Google stream the ads belong to.

PlatformRequirement
WebLoad Google's IMA DAI SDK on the page, before your application script (see below).
AndroidNothing extra: the SDK runtime includes the Google IMA SDK.
iOS and tvOSNothing extra: the runtime pod includes the Google IMA SDK. With Swift Package Manager, add the Google IMA packages as described in iOS.
React NativeNothing extra: the native SDKs include the Google IMA SDK.

On Web, add the IMA DAI loader to your page:

<script src="https://imasdk.googleapis.com/js/sdkloader/ima3_dai.js"></script>

If your channel also has VAST breaks, load ima3.js as well; the two scripts work side by side.

Server-side sessions​

When the channel steers a device to SSAI, the SDK requests the stitched stream from Google and loads it into your content player instead of your original stream URL. Your app keeps the same integration and starts the session with the same Break Manifest URL. On Web, use a content player adapter that exposes its video element, such as the HLS.js, Shaka, or native video adapter. In a server-side session, the SDK still plays the event-triggered breaks — pre-roll, pause, and post-roll — on the device.

Ad targeting parameters​

For Google, assetParameters are sent as Google ad tag parameters (adTagParameters). As a rule of thumb:

When the same key is set in both places, the value on the break wins. See Ad targeting parameters for the merge rules and platform examples.

Troubleshooting​

DiagnosticWhat it meansWhat to do
DA-GAM-CONFIG-RESOLVEDInformational: the Google stream session uses the network code and asset key in the diagnostic.Check that they match your Google stream.
DA-GAM-CONFIG-MISSINGThe Break Manifest carries Google breaks but no usable Google configuration.Check that the channel is connected to Google.
DA-GAM-SESSION-FAILEDThe Google stream session could not be started.On Web, load ima3_dai.js on the page. Otherwise, check the error message in the diagnostic.

Breaks that fail in the backend, for example because Google could not decision them in time, end up in the ERROR state and never reach the SDK. See Troubleshooting on the Google Pod Serving integration page for the possible reasons.

ResourceDescription
VODVOD channels: timebase, seeking, and delivery modes.
Google Ad ManagerOrganization-level prerequisites: network code and service account.
Ad targeting parametersPassing ad tag parameters to Google.
Your ad server (VAST) on VODPlay VAST tags from your own ad server, without Google Ad Manager.
Google Ad Manager on liveThe same workflow for live streams.