VAST Version 4.0 - Released January 21, 2016

Sep 21, 2026

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Video Ad Serving Template (VAST) specification, Version 4.0, released January 21, 2016, standardizes how digital video ads are requested, delivered, tracked, verified, and reported. It includes corrections and clarifications added in April 2016, outlines general overview topics such as client/server-side serving, ad tracking, viewability, programmatic and long-form support, and defines VAST compliance expectations for ad servers, video players, XML structure, encoding URIs, tracking, wrapper ads, error reporting, macros, and industry icons.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryPresentations

FormatPDF

Pages74

Reading Time26 min

AccessFree to download

Executive Summary

Intended Audience

Resources for Digital In-stream Video

1 General Overview

1.1 VAST Ad Serving and Tracking

1.2 Viewability and Ad Verification

1.3 Programmatic Support

1.4 Long-Form Video Support

2 VAST Compliance

2.1 Ad Server Expectations

2.2 Video Player Expectations

2.3 General Compliance

2.4 Viewability Verification and Interactive Linear Creative

3 VAST Implementation

3.1 Declaring the VAST response

3.2 VAST

3.3 Ad

Video Ad Serving Template (VAST) VERSION 4.0 RELEASED JANUARY 21, 2016 Corrections and clarifications (Section 7) added April 2016 This document has been developed by the IAB Digital Video Committee The Video Ad Serving Template (VAST) specification was created by a working group of volunteers from IAB member companies. The following IAB member companies contributed to this document: 4A’s & Ad-ID A&E Television Networks ABC/Disney Interactive Media Group Adobe Systems Inc. AerServ AT&TBrightcove Brightline Brightroll CBS Interactive Collective Demand Media DoubleVerify Engage BDR Extreme Reach EyeSee Fox Networks Group FreeWheel Google & YouTube Hulu Innovid Inc Integral Ad Science JW Player LiveRail Inc. Mediative Microsoft Mixpo Moat NBC Universal Opera Media Works PGA Tour PointRoll Pubmatic Quantcast Rhythm New Media Rovi Corp SeaChange International SET Simulmedia Sizmek Technologies Sony SpotX Time Warner Cable Tremor Video TubeMogul Turner Broadcasting System, [Inc./CNN.com](Inc./CNN.com)[ ](Inc./CNN.com)Twitch Vdopia Verizon Wireless Vevo Viacom Vindico Visible Measures VivaKi White Ops Xumo The IAB lead on this initiative is Amit Shetty. Contact [adtechnology@iab.com](adtechnology@iab.com) to comment on this document. Please be sure to include the version number of this document (found on the bottom right corner on this page) . ABOUT THE IAB’S DIGITAL VIDEO COMMITTEE The Digital Video Committee of the IAB is comprised of over 180 member companies actively engaged in the creation and execution of digital video advertising. One of the goals of the committee is to implement a comprehensive set of guidelines, measurement, and creative options for interactive video advertising. The Committee works to educate marketers and agencies on the strength of digital video as a marketing vehicle. A full list of Committee member companies can be found here. This document is on the IAB website at: [http://www.iab.com/guidelines/vast4.0](http://www.iab.com/guidelines/vast4.0) © 2016 IAB Technology Laboratory 2 VAST_v4 .0 Table of Contents Executive Summary ..............................................................................................6 Intended Audience ................................................................................................7 Resources for Digital In-stream Video ..................................................................8 1 General Overview ........................................................... 9 1.1 VAST Ad Serving and Tracking ....................................................................9 1.1.1 Sending An Ad Request ...................................................................9 1.1.2 Client-Side Ad Serving.................................................................... 10 1.1.3 Server-Side Ad Serving .................................................................. 10 1.1.4 Server-to-Server Ad Tracking ......................................................... 12 1.2 Viewability and Ad Verification ................................................................... 13 1.3 Programmatic Support................................................................................ 13 1.4 Long-Form Video Support .......................................................................... 14 1.4.1 High-Quality Video .......................................................................... 14 1.4.2 Unique Creative Identification ......................................................... 14 2 VAST Compliance ......................................................... 15 2.1 Ad Server Expectations .............................................................................. 15 2.2 Video Player Expectations.......................................................................... 15 2.3 General Compliance ...................................................................

FAQs

What is VAST 4.0 intended to standardize?

VAST 4.0 standardizes how digital video ads are served, tracked, and verified, covering request flows, compliance expectations, XML structure, and reporting needs.

What additions were made after the initial release?

Corrections and clarifications in Section 7 were added in April 2016.

Which parties collaborated on the VAST specification?

VAST was developed by the IAB Digital Video Committee, with contributions from numerous IAB member companies, coordinated through an IAB working group.

Sep 21, 2026

Upload by Ezra