On Jan. 31, 2022, Google is going to turn off Scaled Partner Management (SPM). If you’re a publisher and that sentence sends anxiety down your spine, pay attention. If you don’t have all of your eligible ad inventory associated with a parent account in the new platform, Multiple Customer Management (MCM), ads are going to stop serving on Feb. 1, 2022.

If you’re like most publishers, you can’t have even a single day of lost ad revenue. And that’s a big part of the reason why the Playwire team has been getting frantic questions from publishers who are worried about missing the deadline. 

If you’re experiencing something that feels a little like panic, don’t worry. This post will tell you everything you need to know. Read on.

In case you’re wondering, Playwire has already migrated every publisher who works with us to MCM. Wouldn’t you love to be a part of this exclusive crew? We’d love to have you. Contact us. 

Definitions: SPM, MCM & the Big Migration

It’s always helpful to start with some definitions. Let’s make sure we’re all on the same page with the SPM to MCM migration for publishers. 

SPM

SPM is Google’s platform that allows small and medium publishers to use the reach and scale of larger publishers on Google’s Ad Exchange. Smaller publishers are designated as “child publishers,” and channel partners manage their inventory to bring them ad revenue.

This platform has been around since 2014, and it has worked well for many of the publishers Playwire works with.

MCM

MCM is the new version of SPM. For roughly a year, Google has been testing it in pieces by rolling it out to select publishers. But now, the migration is 100% officially going to happen. MCM still works in much the same way as SPM. Smaller publishers can still gain access to Ad Exchange demand through Google partners like Playwire — and reap the revenue rewards. 

The key difference comes down to clarity: with SPM, the relationships between publishers and partners, including their allowed level of inventory and account access, was sometimes unclear. MCM seeks to clarify those points by offering two levels of access that publishers can give to channel partners:

  1. The partner can manage inventory only.
  2. The partner can manage your GAM account.

Most of Playwire’s partner publishers are using option one, but some publishers prefer option two. We can do either. 

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The Migration

News of the migration, which has set a final deadline for the end of January 2022, set many publishers’ nerves on edge. Google’s documentation of the switch makes it clear that publishers who haven’t successfully migrated to MCM by the deadline will stop bringing in ad revenue for inventory that remains on SPM.

The good news is that the change doesn’t require a ton of work on the publisher side. You basically have to implement a new code to run part of the exchange on your back end, and then you have to set up channel partner access inside MCM.

After that’s all done, you shouldn’t notice too much difference from what you got used to with SPM.

Which Publishers Need to Worry About the SPM to MCM Migration?

Not all publishers need to worry about this switch. Really, the only publishers who have to take action related to the SPM to MCM migration are those who use a partner like Playwire to manage their ad revenue.

If you’re flying solo, this isn’t your concern — although you should probably be concerned about the amount of time you could be saving if you were working with a strong revenue partner.

How to Get Ahead of the Switch

If you’re already a publisher who partners with Playwire, you don’t have to worry about any of this. It’s already done. We went ahead and got all of our publishers migrated to MCM as soon as possible and well ahead of the deadline. We sent out a quick questionnaire and took care of everything.

If you aren’t partnered with Playwire, the time to act is now. If you haven’t done anything to get migrated to MCM, Google has already been blocking some of your revenue. And on Feb. 1, 2022, you’re going to start losing a lot of revenue — depending on how much you rely on Google demand. 

Considering getting started with Playwire? The process for us to get you set up in MCM is as simple as filling out a quick (it takes less than 5 minutes) questionnaire.

Working with a revenue partner that isn’t Playwire? It’s time to ask them about the migration. We’ve seen a lot of competitors who are having to scramble to upgrade their accounts so that they have access to MCM. If they don’t upgrade in time, their publishers miss out. We were already there, which is why we were able to jump on this so quickly.

Playwire: Keeping Publishers Ahead of the Pack

The SPM to MCM migration may feel like a big deal, and it is important, but stuff like this happens in ad tech all the time. The key is learning that change is inevitable, and it always pays to stay ahead of it. We’ve stopped just short of writing that on the walls at Playwire HQ — it’s our mantra: keep our publishers ahead of the pack.

Why? Because we put publishers — and their revenue — first. Always. By getting all of our publishers migrated to MCM early, we’ve given our team and their teams time and mental bandwidth to focus on other concerns that can have an impact on revenue. It’s how we help our publishers get ahead and stay ahead.

Does that sound like where you want to be? You can be there. You just have to get in touch with Playwire. Whether you have questions about the MCM migration or are thinking about switching revenue partners, contact us online.

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