Digital Services Act (DSA) Transparency

The Digital Services Act (DSA) is a regulation that applies to online intermediaries and platforms and is applicable in the EU. It lays down transparency obligations in relation to advertising; these obligations apply to Online Platforms, “Very Large Online Platforms” (VLOPs), and “Very Large Online Search Engines” (VLOSEs) as defined by the Digital Services Act. 

Article 26 of the DSA requires Online Platforms to ensure that users have real-time access to certain elements of information about any ad shown to them on an Online Platform: 

• That the ad is indeed an ad
• The identity of the advertiser
• The identity of the party that financed the ad, if it is different from the advertiser
• Information about the “main parameters” used to select the ad presented to the end-user
• Where applicable, information about any means users may have at their disposal to change those main parameters

The Digital Services Act (DSA) Transparency is an OpenRTB extension intended to provide the industry with standard data formats and transport relevant DSA transparency information so that Online Platforms can meet the obligations outlined in Article 26. This extension was designed to address a near-term regulatory requirement and is expected to evolve.