Category Archives: Ads Developer Blog

The official blog for information about the AdWords, AdSense, DoubleClick and AdMob APIs and SDKs

Deprecation of Structured Data Files v7

Today we’re announcing the deprecation of Structured Data Files (SDF) v7. This version will sunset on November 4, 2025.

Migrate to SDF v7.1 or higher before the sunset date to avoid any interruption of service. See the differences between SDF v7 and v7.1 in the v7.1 release notes.

After November 4, 2025, the following changes will apply to all users:

If you run into issues or need help with your migration, please contact us using our new Display & Video 360 API Technical support contact form.

- Trevor Mulchay, Display & Video 360 API Team

Google Ads AI Max for Search campaigns Open Beta

The open beta launch of AI Max for Search campaigns in the Google Ads UI will begin on 27 May 2025.

While full AI Max for Search campaigns support in the Google Ads API is planned for v21 in August 2025, we want to ensure you're prepared for the open beta rollout and understand its potential impact on your API interactions.

What is AI Max for Search campaigns?
What is Changing?
During the open beta period, before full API support arrives in v21, there will be a transitional phase. Here's what API users need to know:
  1. Feature Grouping in the UI: When a user enables AI Max for Search campaigns for a campaign in the Google Ads UI, several legacy features will be grouped into the new AI Max for Search campaigns settings:
    • Text customization (formerly known as Automatically created assets (ACA))
    • Campaign-level broad match (the setting itself)
    • Brand inclusions (previously tied to campaign-level broad match)
    • Campaign-level brand exclusions
  2. Potential API Conflicts During Transition: Once AI Max for Search campaigns has been enabled and then disabled for a campaign via the UI, managing its associated features (ACA, brand list inclusions/exclusions) using any API version is subject to feature grouping and may cause errors. Starting with v21, AI Max for Search campaigns can be activated through the API.
    • Why? Disabling AI Max for Search campaigns in the UI during this interim period doesn't fully revert the underlying settings configuration back to the pre-AI Max for Search campaigns state compatible with older API versions for these specific features.
    • Campaign-Level Broad Match: Attempts to toggle the campaign-level broad match setting via the API will be allowed but may function differently depending on the AI Max for Search campaigns state. Keywords will still be converted to Broad Match if the setting is enabled via the API, but the primary control mechanism moves to AI Max for Search campaign.
    • Text customization: Attempts to deactivate text customization via API requests will raise an error if Final URL expansion is enabled in the UI.
  3. Mitigation - UI Warnings: To prevent accidental disruption, the Google Ads UI will display warning messages when enabling or disabling AI Max in Search campaigns for campaigns that use these legacy features, explicitly mentioning the potential impact on API workflows during this beta period.
  4. Recommendation: We strongly advise coordinating within your teams. If your organization relies heavily on API workflows for managing ACA or Brand Lists, be cautious about enabling and then disabling AI Max in Search campaigns in the UI for those campaigns until full API support lands in v21 in August 2025.
What Stays the Same:
  • You can continue to manage existing Search campaigns using ACA, campaign-level broad match, and brand exclusions via the current API version (v19) as long as AI Max in Search Campaigns has not been enabled and then disabled for those specific campaigns in the UI.
  • Ad Group level Brand Inclusions and Locations of Interest (LOI) pilots (outside of AI Max for Search campaigns) are ending. Functionality for these will only be available within AI Max for Search campaigns going forward.
Preparing for the Future - v21 and beyond:
  • Full Support Coming: API v21 (planned for August 2025) will introduce dedicated fields and services to fully manage all AI Max for Search campaigns features, including the new consolidated controls.
  • Legacy Field Deprecation: Following the launch and adoption of v21, older API versions will sunset. At that point, the legacy fields for ACA, campaign-level broad match, and standalone brand exclusions/inclusions will be fully deprecated and removed from the API.
If you have any questions, please contact us on the forum.
Bob Hancock, Google Ads API Team

Update to the 2025 Google Ads API release schedule

We previously announced our 2025 Google Ads API release plans. We are introducing a few changes to this schedule as a part of our ongoing efforts to evolve our release process. The new schedule lets us make various product features available earlier in the Google Ads API. As usual, additional details on new features will follow as part of the release notes for individual versions.

  1. V20_1 will be upgraded to a major version and named V21.
  2. V21 will be renamed to V22.
  3. We will add two minor releases (v19_2, v20_1) alongside V21 to add these features in existing Google Ads API versions.
  4. The projected launch dates will remain unchanged.

Here’s our updated schedule.

Version Planned Release

Type

Projected launch Projected sunset
V20 Major June/July 2025 June 2026
V21 Major August/September 2025 August 2026
v19_2 Minor August/September 2025 February 2026
v20_1 Minor August/September 2025 June 2026
V22 Major October/November 2025 October 2026

Please take a look at your future plans to make sure they still align with the upcoming Google Ads API release schedule.

How to get help

If you have any questions or need help, check out the Google Ads API support page for options.

 - , Google Ads API Team

Optimize IMA Android monetization with faster loading

IMA Android version 3.35.1 adds the ImaSdkFactory.initialize() method. This call begins loading necessary SDK resources before the first ad request, leading to faster load times. These changes can limit ad buffering, and help maximize ad impressions and monetization. Depending on the device, the loading process can take several seconds to complete.

We strongly recommend making the initialize() call as soon as possible after the app starts. This approach shortens the time to first frame for pre-roll ads, thus limiting the time users are waiting and increasing monetization potential.

For applications that implement these load time improvements, the following benefits show:

  • An average decrease of 0.25 to 0.5 seconds in time to first frame.
  • With larger decreases for TV implementations, up to a five second improvement.

The following diagram shows an app using the initialize() method call to load system resources before a user selects a video:

The ImaSdkFactory.initialize() call accepts an ImaSdkSettings instance. Use the same settings values that are used to create any AdsLoader instances in the app. For client-side and DAI for more information, see optimize IMA load time . If you have any questions, feel free to reach out using the IMA technical forum.

 - Jackson Sui, Interactive Media Ads Developer Relations

April 2025 update to Display & Video 360 API

Today, we’re announcing the April 2025 update to the Display & Video 360 API. This update includes the following:

In addition to these new features, This update also includes a fix for a known issue that caused advertisers.list requests to ignore provided orderBy parameters.

For more details, see the Display & Video 360 API release notes. Before using these new features, make sure to update your client library to the latest version.

If you need help with these new features, please contact us using our new Display & Video 360 API Technical support contact form.

- Trevor Mulchay, Display & Video 360 API Team

April 2025 update to Display & Video 360 API

Today, we’re announcing the April 2025 update to the Display & Video 360 API. This update includes the following:

In addition to these new features, This update also includes a fix for a known issue that caused advertisers.list requests to ignore provided orderBy parameters.

For more details, see the Display & Video 360 API release notes. Before using these new features, make sure to update your client library to the latest version.

If you need help with these new features, please contact us using our new Display & Video 360 API Technical support contact form.

- Trevor Mulchay, Display & Video 360 API Team

Google Ads API v17 sunset reminder

Google Ads API v17 will sunset on June 4, 2025. After this date, all v17 API requests will begin to fail. Migrate to a newer version prior to June 4, 2025 to ensure your API access is unaffected.

Here are some resources to help you with the migration: You can view a list of methods and services your project has recently called using the Google Cloud Console:
  1. In the Google Cloud Console, open the APIs & Services tab.
  2. In the table, click Google Ads API.
  3. On the METRICS subtab, you should see your recent requests plotted on each graph. You can see which methods you've sent requests to in the Methods table. The method name includes a Google Ads API version, a service, and a method name, such as google.ads.googleads.v17.services.GoogleAdsService.Mutate.
  4. (Optional) Choose the timeframe you want to view for your requests.
If you have questions while you’re upgrading, reach out to us on the forum or at [email protected].
Benji Rothman, Google Ads API Team

Announcing v19.1 of the Google Ads API

Today, we’re announcing the v19.1 release of the Google Ads API. To use any of the v19.1 features, you must upgrade your client libraries and client code. The updated client libraries and code examples will be published next week. This release includes no breaking changes and maintains backwards compatibility for those who have already upgraded to v19.

Here are the highlights:

Where can I learn more?

The following resources can help you get started:

If you have any questions or need additional help, contact us via the forum.

 - , Google Ads API Team

Unlock Premium Ad Experiences for livestreams with Server-Guided Ad Insertion (SGAI)

We're excited to introduce Google's approach to Server Guided Ad Insertion (SGAI), designed to unlock key benefits:

  • Flexibility: Support for new innovative ad formats to meet publisher’s diverse needs
  • Control: Greater control over ad break scheduling
  • Efficiency: Resource savings and operational simplification

SGAI is an ad insertion method where an ad server instructs the video player on how to manage ad transitions dynamically within the content stream. This technique blends the advantages of two common methods: it offers the seamless ad integration seen in server-side insertion (SSAI) and the implementation ease found in client-side insertion (CSAI). SGAI’s ability to support non-intrusive ad experiences, such as squeezebacks and L-banners, where advertisements appear alongside the continuously playing content, creates prominent branding opportunities and experiences alongside content.

In this post, we'll address the key questions on the core concepts and benefits of this exciting new technology.

What is the "server-guided" part in SGAI?

SGAI uses Google Dynamic Ad Insertion (DAI) to perform ad selection, transcoding, and return the ad pod manifest for the entire ad break, ready for the video player to load and play just like a content stream.

The server-guided aspect highlights the collaborative nature of ad delivery in SGAI. While Google DAI servers do the heavy lifting of building and delivering the ad break, the client app and video player takes control of the ad break timing and insertion.

Control over ad break scheduling

To control the ad break timing, you can use your own infrastructure, such as a packager, an encoder, a manifest manipulator or a direct notification to the client app. Ahead of the ad breaks, you can use the Ad Manager’s Early Ad Break Notification API to create and schedule upcoming ad breaks, optimizing ad fill rate for high concurrency livestream events.

Using these tools, you define the expected start time, duration, and metadata of the ad break and signal Google Ad Manager, your client app and the video player to prepare and play the ad break.

How flexible is SGAI?

There are two different methods of using server guided ad insertion to meet diverse publisher needs:

  • Client-side ad stitching: the client app listens to the video player's timed metadata for upcoming ad break events or follows a preset ad schedule. The client app proactively loads the ad break manifest.
    At ad break start, the client app can switch between content and ad, or arrange both content and ads simultaneous playbacks to implement innovative ad formats, such as squeezeback, L-banner, side-by-side windows.
  • Server-side ad stitching: the packager, or encoder, inserts an ad marker pointing to the ad manifest into the content manifest. The video player reactively loads the ad break manifest and switches between content and ad in due time.

We design our SGAI to work with standards, such as HLS interstitials and the upcoming DASH specification. This allows for easy interoperability across different players, client platforms and streaming tech stacks.

How does SGAI client-side ad stitching work?

This section covers an SGAI client-side example in which the video player parses SCTE-35 markers in the content manifest and schedules an ad break. This approach offers server resource savings and operational simplification.

The livestream flow has the following key steps:

  1. The client app loads the IMA SDK to create DAI pod serving stream sessions and process ad events.
  2. The client app uses a video player for playback, and constructs the HLS or DASH ad pod manifest URLs, incorporating SCTE-35 data as needed.
  3. A few seconds before the expected ad break time, the video player loads the ad pod manifest. At the beginning of the ad break, the client app switches from the content to the ad playback.

How does SGAI server-side ad stitching work?

Livestream workflows with SGAI server-side ad stitching follow similar steps above, but a packager inserts ad markers pointing to ad pod manifest URLs shortly before each ad break.

Next Steps

We encourage you to explore SGAI documentation to create premium ad experiences with efficiency and adaptability. To get started on using SGAI, contact your Google account manager.

- Thang Duong, Ads Developer Relations and Sourya Roy, Senior Product Manager, Google Ad Manager

Launching Structured Data Files v8.1 and upcoming changes

Today we’re announcing the general availability of Structured Data Files v8.1. All users can now use SDF v8.1 to upload and download SDFs in the Display & Video 360 UI, and to download SDFs through the Display & Video 360 API.

SDF v8.1 adds support for controlling inventory source settings for Demand Gen ad groups, enforces OMID targeting set at the advertiser level, and renames TrueView Content Filter column to Inventory Mode in “Line Item” and “Insertion Order” files.

In addition to launching SDF v8.1, we are also announcing the following two breaking changes to Structured Data Files that will go into effect on April 22, 2025:

  • You will no longer be able to create YouTube video action line items using SDF. Instead, customers should create Demand Gen line items. Any attempted creation of line items using SDF upload with a Subtype column value of “Action” and a Type column value of “TrueView” will fail.
  • You will be required to include the value “Video Partners” in the TrueView Inventory Source Targeting column of line items with the Type column value of “Demand Gen”. Once this enforcement begins, the value will be backfilled for existing line items and included when downloading new Structured Data Files. To control whether ad groups within Demand Gen line items serve on Google Display Network inventory, you will be required to update to SDF v8.1 and set your desired values in the Demand Gen Inventory Source Strategy and Demand Gen Enabled Inventory Sources columns for ad groups. More details on this renaming and inventory expansion can be found in the Display & Video 360 Help Center.

Full details on the changes between v8 and v8.1 can be found in the Structured Data Files release notes. If you are still using v6, v7 or v7.1, you can follow the instructions in our v7 and v8 migration guides.

If you run into issues or need help with this new version, please follow the instructions in our support guide, or contact us using our contact form.

- Trevor Mulchay, Display & Video 360 API Team