Dive Brief:

• The Interactive Advertising Bureau's (IAB) Technology Laboratory has released its Publisher Ad Blocking Primer to offer publishers a step-by-step approach to website visitors that use ad blockers.
• The primer includes a four-step blueprint for publishers called D.E.A.L.: 1) Detect ad blocking in order to initiate a conversation 2) Explain the value exchange of advertising on the site 3) Ask for changed behavior such as turning off ad blocking software or whitelisting the site 4) Lift restrictions or limit access to the site depending on the site visitor’s response.
• The IAB also released an ad blocking detection script available to its membership.

Dive Insight:

The recent surge in popularity of ad blocking technology is a major problem for publishers and advertisers alike. A recent report shows how far the technology has proliferated, with 57% of U.S. adults surveyed using ad blockers on desktop.  

Now, an IAB report aims to provide publishers with a menu of options for dealing with the challenge. The primer was created along with a wide range of media and technology participating companies. It provides seven potential strategies for publishers to deal with ad blockers:

1. Notice: Communication with the user about their use of ad blocking technology.
2. Access Denial: Preventing users with ad blockers from visiting the site. 
3. Tiered Experience: Limiting users with ad blockers from getting the full value of the website without denying them access outright.
4. Payments from Visitors: Publishers can request payment from ad-blocking users who want to visit their site.
5. Ad Reinsertion: Publishers can use technology to bypass ad blockers to place ads on the site. 
6. Payment to Ad Blocker Companies: Publishers can pay ad blocking companies to ensure users with their technology can visit their sites and see their ads.
7. Payment to Visitors: Publishers can provide users with incentives to view ads.

Publishers have been working on different ways to resolve the ad blocking issue -- from Forbes' outright blocking of ad-blocking users to a Canadian publisher that allows visitors with ad blockers to access content by signing in through Facebook -- but no standardized has won out yet. Only 3% of the top 250 North American publishers are directly addressing ad blocking technology, according to a recent report.

“The release of this primer in conjunction with the open-source ad blocking detection script will open the door for transparency and meaningful dialogue with visitors using ad blockers,” Scott Cunningham, general manager of the IAB Tech Lab and senior vice president of technology and ad operations at IAB, said in a statement. “We believe that a combination of tools and the DEAL approach to communication with consumers will allow publishers big and small the chance to cut through the blockade, ensuring the strength of the open, ad-supported internet.”