The open web is not the enemy.

For years, marketers have been shifting budgets away from the open web and toward walled gardens like social platforms and retail media networks. The reason? On the surface, those environments seemed to offer the perfect combination of targeting, measurement, and engagement - all wrapped in a context once considered premium: personal, social content from friends and creators. Fast forward to today, and those same feeds are crowded with recycled trends and AI-generated content.

Social platforms owe their popularity to data, scale, and control. But they aren’t necessarily better - just better at selling the story. They made advertising simple: one login, one dashboard, instant results. The open web, by contrast, has long felt scattered and complicated, even if the audiences and content were stronger.

But, the open web isn’t the problem. The tactic is.

In fact, The Trade Desk reports that consumers now spend around 61% of their online time on the open web versus just 39% in walled gardens. And with Meta acknowledging that ad spend is gradually shifting outward from the big closed ecosystems, there’s clear evidence that the balance of power is starting to change.

I believe the open web is a place of immense value. It’s the foundation of quality journalism and independent publishing - the very spaces that enable freedom of speech and diverse voices online. In a digital world increasingly dominated by walled gardens and algorithmic echo chambers, supporting the open web means supporting a healthier, more transparent internet.

The truth is, the open web can rival any platform when it comes to delivering premium, high-engagement ad experiences. You just need to know how.  The truth is, the open web can rival any platform when it comes to delivering premium, high-engagement ad experiences, you just need to know how. According to The Trade Desk’s Sellers and Publishers Report, the top 500 digital publishers account for around 50% of all ad revenue on the open internet - clear proof that quality environments continue to command real value.

The industry has been so laser-focused on insights and data, leaving creative importance behind. And while data-driven marketing is vitally important, what’s the point of reaching the right consumer only to serve them a below-par experience?

One of the biggest challenges has been creative delivery. Video formats that feel native to social platforms often come across as clunky, out of place, or painfully slow when taken out of context.

The good news? There’s a solution.

With SeenThis’ adaptive streaming technology, video ads don’t weigh down pages or leave audiences staring at blank boxes. They load instantly, play beautifully, and integrate seamlessly into display environments. In fact, clients achieve 70% higher attentive seconds when using SeenThis.

That changes everything.

When video is no longer a burden on performance and the file size is no object, the open web becomes a place where brands can:

• Reach audiences at scale, beyond the confines of walled gardens
• Deliver premium, TV-like creative experiences in trusted editorial environments
• Cut wasted impressions by ensuring ads actually load and play, rather than being lost to slow file transfers

The result? Higher attention, better outcomes, and a more sustainable use of budgets.

It’s time to reframe how we think about the open web. With Seedtag finding that 74% of consumers trust articles more on the open web than the walled gardens, the opportunity has never been more clear.

With the right technology, it’s not the channel of last resort — it’s one of the most powerful environments for brand storytelling.

SeenThis makes it possible.