Open internet vs. Walled gardens

When planning digital advertising campaigns, companies today face two dominant environments: the Walled Gardens and the Open Internet. Both offer access to large audiences and advanced advertising opportunities, but they differ fundamentally in terms of control, transparency, and data ownership.

As advertising budgets increasingly concentrate within a few closed platforms, questions arise about long-term flexibility, measurement integrity, and the health of the broader media landscape. At the same time, advancements in programmatic technology, contextual targeting, and privacy-respecting strategies are reshaping the value of the Open Internet.

This article provides an overview of both worlds and helps advertisers, media planners, and brand managers make more informed decisions in media planning. At the same time, it encourages rethinking: Does the entire advertising budget need to be invested in closed platforms, or is a combination of both the better choice?

WHAT ARE WALLED GARDENS?

A Walled Garden is a closed digital ecosystem in which a single company controls every aspect of the advertising experience, from audience data to inventory to campaign delivery and measurement.

Well-known examples of Walled Gardens include:

• Google (Search, YouTube, Display Network)
• Meta (Facebook, Instagram)
• Amazon
• Apple (App Store, Safari Ads)
• TikTok

These platforms provide direct access to massive user bases and precise targeting via first-party data. However, advertisers operate within a walled-off system with limited insight into the underlying data. Campaigns are planned, measured, and evaluated using the platform’s own tools. The experience is often smooth, but lacks transparency.

WHY ADVERTISERS INVEST BILLIONS IN WALLED GARDENS

Walled Gardens remain the first choice for many advertisers, primarily because of scalability, ease of use, and precise targeting. With billions of daily impressions, intuitive tools, and extensive first-party data, Google, Meta & Co. offer a convenient “all-in-one” solution. According to the WARC Global Ad Spend Outlook report, Google and Meta account for over 50% of global advertising revenue, and Walled Gardens as a whole for up to 85%.

Key advantages of Walled Gardens:

• Massive reach and scalability: Billions of daily impressions allow advertisers to quickly reach large and diverse audiences.
• Integrated campaign management: Every step, from targeting to reporting, takes place within a single ecosystem, simplifying workflows.
• Extensive first-party data: These platforms leverage their user data to enable highly precise targeting.
• Proven performance: Many advertisers achieve consistent results, making Walled Gardens a low-risk option for achieving KPIs.

Their dominance is reinforced not only by performance but also by structural factors:

• Agencies are under pressure to deliver KPIs quickly
• Media planners fall back on familiar, fast solutions
• New strategies are rarely tested due to time and resource constraints

The result: A cycle in which Walled Gardens automatically dominate. Yet studies show that even a moderate reallocation of budget to high-quality Open Internet environments can improve brand impact, media efficiency, and even sustainability goals. These circumstances reinforce the dominance of Walled Gardens, as their integrated systems fit seamlessly into existing workflows.

Unlocking alternative channels usually requires:

• A clear strategic direction
• Transparent quality standards
• And the courage to question established processes

CONVENIENT, BUT AT WHAT COST? THE HIDDEN DOWNSIDES OF WALLED GARDENS

As convenient as Walled Gardens are, they come with risks, particularly regarding transparency and control. Because platforms handle both delivery and reporting, advertisers depend on the platforms’ own metrics with no independent verification. Each platform uses its own methodology, making cross-channel comparisons difficult or skewed. Independent investigations by organizations such as Adalytics and The Markup have uncovered serious issues:

• Ads were shown on unintended placements
• Viewability metrics were inflated
• Brand safety settings were partially bypassed

Meanwhile, regulatory pressure is increasing. New laws like the Digital Markets Act (DMA) and the Digital Services Act (DSA) aim to create fairer conditions. But regulation takes time.

WHAT IS THE OPEN INTERNET?

The Open Internet refers to the digital advertising world outside the Walled Gardens. It encompasses millions of independent websites, mobile apps, and digital publishers, from major news outlets and streaming services to specialized blogs and niche offerings.

Advertising on the Open Internet is mostly programmatic, using adtech infrastructures such as:

• DSPs (Demand-Side Platforms)
• SSPs (Supply-Side Platforms)
• Ad Exchanges

Learn more about SSPs, DSPs & Ad Exchanges here.

THE BENEFITS OF THE OPEN INTERNET

Unlike Walled Gardens, advertisers retain full control over their campaigns here, from targeting to reporting.

Key benefits in detail:

• Independent measurement: Advertisers can rely on third-party tools such as IAS, MOAT, or DoubleVerify to objectively verify viewability, clicks, conversions, and brand safety. This provides transparent insights into where budgets are working and whether placements were truly visible.

• Contextual and flexible targeting: Instead of relying on personal data, ads can be delivered based on topics, content, or categories – e.g., news, lifestyle, sports, or entertainment. This is privacy-compliant, supports cookieless strategies, and still allows highly relevant targeting.

• Transparency & full control: Advertisers can manage every aspect of their campaigns – from choosing publishers and formats to using blacklists, whitelists, and specific page placements. This ensures brands always know where and in what context they appear.

• Scalability & optimization: Campaigns can run across a large variety of publishers and formats while being continuously optimized. The diversity of inventory and programmatic flexibility allow budgets to be shifted dynamically and performance peaks to be maximized.

Thanks to AI-driven targeting, cookieless ID solutions, and real-time bidding, the Open Internet is more powerful than ever – and advertisers retain full ownership of their campaign data.

Want to learn more? Schedule a meeting with us here.

THE IMPORTANCE OF HIGH-QUALITY MEDIA ENVIRONMENTS

Numerous studies show: Advertising in trustworthy editorial environments (e.g., news portals, trade media, or quality blogs) achieves better branding effects than advertising on social media platforms.

According to IAS and the Global Alliance for Responsible Media (GARM):

• Users are more likely to trust ads in high-quality content
• Brand recall and brand image improve significantly
• Contextual targeting can be equivalent to or even outperform behavioral targeting, especially without cookies

At the same time, advertising on the Open Internet funds independent journalism and diverse voices, contributing to an open, pluralistic digital economy.

TIME FOR A NEW MEDIA MINDSET

Walled Gardens will remain an important part of digital advertising. Their data richness and reach make them indispensable for performance marketing. But they should not be the only environment you invest in.

A balanced media strategy, combining Walled Gardens and the Open Internet, offers:

• Greater transparency and data control
• Access to diverse, high-quality content environments
• Better adaptability to privacy regulations

The Open Internet has evolved: It provides scalable reach, modern tools, and verifiable performance, all with full data ownership.

In an era of growing regulation and rising expectations for privacy and accountability, expanding open, verifiable, and adaptable advertising environments is not just smart, it’s necessary.

Want to start your next campaign on the Open Internet?

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