Standard Speciﬁcations
Image
banners
Ad Units

Pixel size

Can be served to Mobile?

Can be served toApp?

Billboard

970x250

No

No

Leaderboard

728x90No

Yes

MobileLeaderboard

320x50Yes

MPU

300x250

Double MPU

Interscroller

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Ad File Formats

Third Party Rich MediaMax File Asset Max. Initial
Size
Size

Max.
Polite File
Load Size

Subsequent Max.
User-Initiated File
Load Size

100 KB150 KB

1 MB

2.2 MB progressive
video

100 KB150 KB

1 MB

2.2 MB progressive
video

No

50 KB

150 KB

1 MB

2.2 MB progressive
video

Yes

Yes

100 KB150 KB

1 MB

2.2 MB progressivevideo

300x600

Yes

Yes

100 KB150 KB

1 MB

2.2 MB progressive
video

Asset
640x1200 /Safe area
640 x 854

Yes

No

500 MB150 KB

1 MB

Sound: Must be user initiatedWe do not accept blocking tags, for any concerns liaise with your Sales
representative
Please ensure all tags are HTTPS secure
Max 3 animation loops, 15 seconds per loop. Must ﬁnish on a static
frame.

GIF, JPG, PNG,
HTML5, Third
Party

Jpeg, Video, PNG,
PSD
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2.2 MB progressive
videoVideo may be played in native player which has standard controls
Ad unit content must be clearly distinguishable from normal web
page content
Must include clearly deﬁned user sound/mute button
HTML5 guidelines - Back-up Jpeg or GIF advised.
Publisher Hosted HTML5 max ﬁleweight 150kb
Interscrollers are built in-house*Per AssetSkin Speciﬁcations
Pixel Size

Example Screen Size
(WxH)

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Nav Bar exclusion

Asset Safe Area
(WxH)

1920x1080px

120x830px

1680x1050px

120x830px

1600x900px

120x650px

460x1500 Left
460x1500 Right●●

Content Area

1180px

95px

1440x900px

120x500px

1400x1050px

100x820px

1366x768px

85x545

Supply 2 x assets for left and right display
Examples | Templates○ The Times Best practice Home/Section○ The Times Best practice Article pages○ Left asset○ Right asset○ Skin example - Homepage○ Skin example - Article○ Skin example - Travel
All assets are subject to Editorial approval

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Ad File Formats

Max File Size

Static Gif, Jpeg, PNG

100kb per asset

Preview pages will be provided a minimum of 1 day prior to launch
Click-through URL required
1x1 tracking and performance pixels accepted
Assets should reﬂect all screen sizes
Please supply assets 3-5 working days prior to launchContent outside the Message Safe Area may not be visible on all user
screens depending on resolution and screen dimensions

Video Speciﬁcations
Standard
Formats

MOV, FLV,MPEG4, AVI, etc.

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3rd
party
Tags

Desktop

MobileTablets

App

Common placement
ratiosAdvised File weightMax. File weight

VAST tag

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

16:9 | 9x16

100MB

500MB

Article content Only
We do not support VPAID
Max length 15 - 30 seconds
App inventory is limited to IOS onlyVideo may be played in native player which has standard controls
Must include clearly deﬁned user sound/mute button
Must not Autoplay soundBest Practice● Framerate: 30-60 (30 preferable)● Bitrate: Adaptive with a ceiling of 12mbps● Length: 6-9 seconds is the most performance-wise● Size: up to 50MB (up to 100MB max)

Takeover / Roadblock
Section●●●●Formats

Desktop

MobileTablets

App

Home Page

Yes

Yes

Yes

No

Section Page

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Article

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

Travel

Yes

Yes

Yes

Yes

970x250 | 728x90 | 300x250 |
320x50 | Skin

Caps or day parting must be advised prior to campaign launchFirst Impression Takeovers are capped at 1 Per day
Screengrabs provided for each separate insertion
Please allow 24 hours for creative rotation or supply instruction precampaign●●●●

Preview pages will be provided a minimum of 1 day prior to launch
Click-through URL required
1x1 tracking and performance pixels accepted
Please supply assets 3-5 working days prior to launch

Rich Media Formats
Formats

Preview

Video Skin

Here

Premium custom format with billboard at the top of the content and vertical video imagery on both sides - subject
to editorial approval.

Pushdown Billboard

Here

Premium Custom Billboard format placed at the top of the content, users click to initiate.

Carousel / Swipe

Here

Custom mobile format, users swipe left or right to showcase other products (minimum 2 images).

Shake

Here

Custom mobile format, users shake phone to activate ad.

Spin Carousel

Here

Custom mobile format users swipe to initiate.

Colour Carousel

Here

Custom mobile format where users swipe to showcase different product colours within one existing
frame/background.

Magnifying Glass

Here

Custom magnifying glass format, allowing users to see details of product close-up.

●●●

Description

Creative must not impact site performance
All Rich Media builds are subject to a ﬂat production rate of £1,000 (feedoes not apply when ﬁnal creative assets are supplied and is waved for
campaigns where media value is equal to £30k or greater)
Custom ad formats may incur additional production costs and are‘subject to testing’●●

SLAs: minimum 5-10 working days required ahead of campaign live
date - this will be factored into creative process
Creative specs and any raw assets required for builds must be
conﬁrmed prior to campaign sign-off

V-Studio Formats
Formats

Preview

Description

Slide

Here

Custom slide format, using toggle slide function to view product.

3D Object

Here

Custom 3D format, users are able to interact with to view product from different angles.

V-EditHere

Takes existing 16:9 video assets & re-frames into a vertical video ad.

V-SkinHere

Adding a skin to an existing 16:9 asset with a customizable CTA to create a vertical video format.

V-Select

Here

Multiple vertical videos edited into one format.

V-Social

Here

Vertical video format that includes brands social accounts.

V-TalkHere

Vertical Video format with a CTA to ‘Tap to Call’ function.

V-360

Here

Vertical video turned into a 360 virtual reality format.

V-Cal

Here

Vertical video creative format but comes with a 'tap to add to calendar' call-to-action.

V-Drive

Here

Vertical video creative driving users to nearest store location using geo.

V-ShopHere

Vertical video format that includes shoppable CTA driving audience to purchase.

V-Studio:
A full-service studio designed to produce, publish, and distribute vertical video ads exclusively for mobile environments across The Times.
v-Studio eliminates barriers to entry by enabling advertisers to quickly repurpose existing 16:9 video assets.
Campaigns have successfully run for dozens of premium advertisers, with outstanding results.

Newsletters
TitlesBooks
Crime Club
Editors choice - Scotland
Environment | Earth
Fashion | Style
Food and Drink
Money Mentor
Money
Property
Puzzles
The Brief
Times Enterprise Network | SME
Best of Times
Business Brief
Football
Red Box●●●●●Rich media not accepted
GIF or JPEG or PNG - STATIC ONLY
Screengrabs provided for each separate insertion
Required Standard Click through URL
Optional 1X1 Click and Impression Tracker

Schedule

Formats

Weekly2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + 2 x Logo
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + 2 x Logo
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
Dynamic Only
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + 2 x Logo
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + 2 x Logo

Daily

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Billboards sit in Header and Footer positions - 970x250
Logos sit in Header and Footer positions - 300x50
Creatives can be targeted to speciﬁc positions
Dynamic Positions can support: 970x250, 300x50, 728x90
100kb maximum ﬁleweight per creative
Please supply assets 3-5 working days prior to launchNewsletters
TitlesBooks
Crime Club
Editors choice - Scotland
Environment | Earth
Fashion | Style
Food and Drink
Money Mentor
Money
Property
Puzzles
The Brief
Times Enterprise Network | SME
Best of Times
Business Brief
Football
Red Box●●●●●Rich media not accepted
GIF or JPEG or PNG - STATIC ONLY
Screengrabs provided for each separate insertion
Required Standard Click through URL
Optional 1X1 Click and Impression Tracker

Schedule

Formats

Weekly2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + 2 x Logo
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + 2 x Logo
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
Dynamic Only
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + 2 x Logo
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + Dynamic
2 x Billboards + 2 x Logo

Daily

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●
●
●
●
●

Billboards sit in Header and Footer positions - 970x250
Logos sit in Header and Footer positions - 300x50
Creatives can be targeted to speciﬁc positions
Dynamic Positions can support: 970x250, 300x50, 728x90
100kb maximum ﬁleweight per creative
Please supply assets 3-5 working days prior to launchCommon Questions
Can we use HTML5 creative?
Yes, please follow the Google Ad Manager HTML5 guidelines. Back-up Jpegs are recommended.
If using Google Studio allow 3 working days for review. If using other HTML5 type (e.g D.C Studio) please allow 10 working days
Do you accept data pixels? No.
Ads may not collect sensitive information including about racial or ethnic origin, political opinion, religious or philosophical beliefs,
trade-union membership, health or sex life without our prior permission and obtaining consent from our readers.
The advertiser’s privacy policy must be made available when any personal information is collected.
Personal information must be collected and processed securely. Adverts must not state or imply knowledge of personal data, sensitive
information, online activity or the precise whereabouts of a user.
Do you provide reporting? Yes
It is advised to confirm what reporting is expected before a campaign has gone live. This will inform expectations on delivering the
campaign. If delivering your campaign via 3rd party tags, please ensure 3rd party reports are automated to
newsukpubops@ozoneproject.com within 24 hours of launch.
A mid-campaign report and an end of campaign report for all display web campaigns will be provided, any custom report can take up to
24 hours to turnaround based upon the report criteria.
On the basis of using a 3rd Party Rich Media Vendor, there can be discrepancies of up to 10% between stats. This is a common
industry variable, anything more than 10% will be investigated by Digital Ad Operations.

Common Questions
When do I send my assets?
Please provide all assets 3-5 working days prior to launch. For later submissions, please be aware this may delay the campaign
starting.
Can I test or change my ads?
Ad Operations will provide test pages in situ prior to go live if requested and will accept updates or changes for any aspect of yourcreative prior and during your campaign dates.
I cant see my ads? How do I know they are live?
For all campaigns Screengrabs of assets in Situ will be provided within 24 hours. For CPM campaigns, the ad-server will pace to ensure
an even delivery of inventory for the lifetime of the campaign (unless instructed otherwise).
How do I contact News UK if I have any campaign requests?
In the first instance please contact your existing sales person or account manager, for emergencies or if your point of contact isunavailable please use the following:
Digital Account management: digitalaccountmanagers-sm@news.co.uk
Sales: publishingtnl@news.co.uk
Ad Specifications: David.williams1@news.co.uk

Partnerships & Practices
Coalition for Better Ads - Betterads
News UK supports the 'Coalition for Better Ads' initiative to create a better user experience on desktop, tablet and mobile web. As such,
all ad formats and creative specifications fall within and must adhere to the Better Ads Standards as defined here.
IAB UK Gold Standard
News UK is a Gold Standard Certified publisher. Initially, the Gold Standard has three simple but fundamental aims - to reduce adfraud, to improve the digital advertising experience and to increase brand safety by implementing three specific initiatives.
The IAB UK Gold Standard is open to IAB UK members and is currently limited to companies operating within display advertising on
desktop and mobile web only.
Brand Safety
At News UK, we have access to and apply two layers of Brand Safety.
The first is set by the Editorial team in the event of negative breaking news. Once a story is deemed extremely sensitive, the Editorial
team will remove all ad slots on related content.
The second layer is applying ADmantX technology, it applies a vertical approach to brand safety versus standard keyword approach. On
top of the predefined categories including accidents, negative feelings, parental protection, natural disasters, crime, illegal drugs,
alcohol and tobacco, weapons, military and terrorism. Our content is analysed to identify the emotions and sentiments on how it is
written, this allows us to customise protection to safeguard the client's brand with more than black lists and white lists.

Partnerships & Practices
Protecting brands against Ad Fraud
Integral Ad Science
At News UK we use IAS (Integral Ad Science) technology to ensure we protect the brands against invalid traffic, we apply this on all
campaigns by default.
Advertiser-specific Brand Safety categories
Agencies/advertisers have the ability to implement track and blocking functionality off the keyword in a URL to ensure their ads do notdisplay within certain content. If this is in place, News UK will require the same list to copy it in ADmantX and other targeting criteria.
This can only be done if the defined block list has been shared with News UK.
This can be applied to all sales Channels: Programmatic Guaranteed, Direct, PMP

Ad Review & ApprovalAds will be passed through a Creative QA process subject for approval. Creatives are reviewed within 24 hours, although in somecases it may take longer.
The creative review process consists of reviewing the advert's images, text, file weight size, targeting and positioning, in addition to thecontent on the advert's landing page.
The advert may not be approved if the landing page content isn't fully functional, doesn't match the product/service promoted in youradvert or doesn't fully comply with our Advertising Policies.
Cookie duration
The maximum cookie duration we accept is 12 months. News UK reserves the right to reject or remove any advert.
All adverts must be free of any viruses, adware or malware.
No advert will cause an adverse effect on the operation of the website.
News UK Digital Advertising Policy
Brand safety technology partners
News UK has partnered with Integral Ad Science (IAS) and ADmantX to apply an intelligent approach to brand safety.
News UK seeks to inform and entertain readers through our various platforms and titles. In doing so News UK will stir debate and tackle
hard hitting stories.
We understand that there are certain news stories that would not be considered suitable for brands to appear against. This policy
outlines what steps News UK takes to avoid putting brands next to unsuitable content and what we expect from the brands we workwith. This policy applies to News UK’s digital products.

Ad Review & Approval
Editorial Review
Advertisements and editorial content must be clearly distinguishable. News UK will only publish branded content and sponsored
supplements if clearly indicated as an ad.
Editorial decisions will not be influenced by current or potential sponsors and advertisers, and will not be influenced by marketing
decisions. Advertisers and sponsors have no control or influence over the results of searches a user may conduct on the website by
keyword or search topic.
Editorial can request the removal of an advert if it is felt that it contravenes the values or tone of News UK’s titles.
Gambling & Games
News UK supports responsible gambling advertising and abides by local gambling laws and industry regulations. Gambling ads musttarget approved countries, have a landing page that displays information about responsible gambling and targeting your adverts topeople aged 18 years or older in all permitted countries.
Warning labels such as “When the FUN Stops, STOP” or its local variation (if applicable) must be prominently displayed and terms andconditions should also be included on all ad copy.
Political AdvertisingNews UK accepts political advertising with approval from Editorial and commercial teams. Any political advertising must align with thevalues of our brands. All political advertising must comply with local legal requirements, including campaign and election laws andmandated election 'silence periods', for any geographic areas that they target. Political content includes ads for political organisations,political parties, political issue advocacy or fundraising and individual politicians.

Prohibited Content
Our Advertising Policy prohibits some content that we consider to be harmful to or inappropriate for our readers and the brands we workwith, which we describe in further detail below.
The following types of advertisements are prohibited:• Ads that encourage illegal activity, or any illegal conduct, product or enterprise.
• Ads that promote religious views or services.
• Ads that solicit the user’s participation in lawsuits or ads that ask users to report on their medical history for purposes of potential
compensation.
• Ads that depict drug use or excessive drinking.
• Ads that encourage violence or depict hyper-realistic violence.
• Ads that encourage dangerous behaviours.
• Ads that suggest violating laws or regulations.
• Ads that direct users to phishing links, malware or similarly harmful codes or sites.
• Ads that promote cigarettes, cigars or other tobacco.
• Ads that promote firearms, weapons or ammunition.
• Illegal wildlife trade, and products and services derived from endangered or threatened species.
• Ads that encourage dishonest behaviour.
• Ads that address or are intended to appeal specifically to children.
• App installs from sources other than the official app store for the user’s device.
Adult Content
Adverts should respect user preferences and comply with legal regulations. News UK doesn’t allow adult content that are deemed as‘inappropriate’ to our audience or titles.

Useful Contacts
If your main point of contact is unavailable please refer to the below contact information.

Sales: publishingtnl@news.co.uk

Ad Operations: newsukpubops@ozoneproject.com

Account Management: digitalaccountmanagers-sm@news.co.uk

Ad Specifications: David.williams1@news.co.uk