Media agencies hope to drive down costs as Walmart opens up DSP roster

Walmart’s recent move to end its exclusivity agreement with The Trade Desk has added to the  embattled DSP provider’s worries — and had media buyers calculating the pros and cons for their clients.

The retailer has built one of the largest retail media operations in the world in recent years and its high-margin (compared with groceries) ad business has provided it a buffer during a choppy time for the American economy; ad revenue jumped 46% in Q2. Since 2021, independent DSP provider The Trade Desk has been the main doorway through which media buyers access its owned inventory and audience data for offsite targeting — but last month, however, it emerged that the firm had chosen to open up that relationship.

Accordingly, media agencies and advertisers are reading the tea leaves to understand how this changing dynamic between two industry titans might benefit them. “Walmart’s value to advertisers is first-party scale and closed-loop outcomes — not which logo powers the pipes,” said one media buyer, who exchanged anonymity for candor.

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