How Third-Party Verification Is Adding Value and Empowering DOOH Industry

Ask people what third-party verification (TPV) for digital out-of-home does, and most will say something like "it independently checks that your ad campaign played where and when it was supposed to."

While that is true, it’s just a fraction of the value on offer.

Digital-out-of-home third-party verification has evolved far beyond simple playback confirmation. Today, it’s a critical component in streamlining operations, protecting budgets and building the trust needed to push the medium forward.

As media buyers and brands demand greater transparency across all channels, verification software has become the invisible engine helping to empower high-performing DOOH campaigns. It delivers not just proof of delivery, but clarity, agility and the intelligence to act when it still counts.

Unlocking the full potential of DOOH verification

TPV has become one of the most powerful behind-the-scenes forces shaping modern DOOH campaigns. As the medium becomes more complex, dynamic and investment-heavy, advertisers, media owners and agencies alike are under pressure to ensure every campaign runs flawlessly.

That’s where verification proves its real value. Far from a passive post-campaign audit, today’s verification platforms like UniLIVE offer inflight oversight, data-driven for future planning and campaign optimisation, as well as a shared foundation of trust between all parties. They’re enabling a shift from reactive to proactive campaign management, and that shift is redefining what’s possible in DOOH.

Here are five ways TPV drives more value than simply measuring impacts:

1.     Identifying and quantifying added value

Verified DOOH campaigns typically overdeliver by around 34% (according to UniLIVE data). This can be the result of planned bonus value offered by vendors, or unplanned added value from undersold inventory - either way, it adds up.

But without TPV, there’s no way to quantify that uplift or prove it ever happened. Platforms like UniLIVE track every single play, location and timestamp, allowing agencies and advertisers to see the true media value delivered.

Without this visibility, agencies are flying blind. Added value goes unreported, underleveraged, and, crucially, unrecognised. TPV surfaces these moments of overdelivery, enabling teams to demonstrate performance with precision and turn unseen inventory into strategic upside.

2. In-flight insight, not just hindsight that helps to prevent problems

Data from UniLIVE shows that one in six campaigns can run into issues while they are being delivered. These are often the result of manual workflows or scheduling errors and can lead to under-delivery or incorrect copy playing on the wrong screens, times or locations.

​TPV enables in-flight detection, allowing teams to course-correct before the campaign ends rather than relying on post-campaign reports. These small fixes can make the difference between mediocrity and effectiveness, turning insight into action by actively managing performance rather than just measuring it.

3. Saving time with post-campaign reporting

Platforms like UniLIVE automate in-flight and post-campaign reporting, saving planners up to four hours per campaign. By consolidating delivery data across vendors and formats, they remove the need for manual spot-checks, chasing playout logs or stitching together reports.

All plays and audience metrics, down to the hourly and screen level, are centralised and instantly available. This means teams spend less time on admin and more time optimising strategy.

4.  A depth of data that delivers insights that drive smarter campaigns

​Verification platforms generate vast datasets, not just about individual campaigns, but across networks, geographies and timeframes. When aggregated, these insights offer powerful levers for future ad campaign planning and optimisation.

Whether you need to know which formats and environments overperformed during the last five campaigns or want to compare delivery rates across media owners or regions, or are looking to spot long-term trends in seasonal performance, third-party verification platforms turn campaign delivery into a strategic resource.

Measurement across all ad and digital marketing campaigns has never been under more scrutiny. Thankfully, the insights provided by DOOH TPV can enhance both Marketing Mix Modelling and econometric modelling.

Instead of using planned data, media agencies and advertisers can use actual verified delivery data to inform their modelling. With over delivery often happening in DOOH, this ensures that reports are more accurate and can often paint OOH in a better light.

Verification also helps validate CPMs and impression multipliers across vendors by benchmarking delivery against industry standards such as Geopath. In a fragmented programmatic ecosystem, this level of cross-checking allows advertisers to identify inflated delivery claims, flag overpriced or underpriced inventory and ensure they’re paying fair market rates.

5.  Fuelling DOOH growth through trust, transparency and tangible results

OOH has always been a trusted medium. But in today’s media mix, trust is no longer about how confident you feel; it’s about what the numbers prove.

Third-party verification brings that crucial proof that advertisers crave. It validates delivery down to the individual play, screen and hour showing not only that ads ran, but where, when and how often.

By aligning DOOH with the accountability, transparency and brand safety standards expected in digital media, TPV builds confidence with brands, ensuring that what was booked is what was delivered. This level of transparency not only de-risks campaigns, it supports stronger client retention and unlocks incremental investment from performance-led advertisers.

As DOOH continues gaining momentum - growing 8.44% and reaching $22 billion in 2025 - it’s third-party verification that’s ensuring that growth is sustainable.

The bonus benefit of advancing DOOH sustainability

In addition to these five core benefits, TPV provides media agencies and advertisers with campaign-level data on actual energy use and emissions. This is thanks to being able to confirm what played when and where.

Through verification advertisers can track delivery against targets and make informed decisions - such as pausing campaigns once goals are met - to prevent unnecessary energy consumption and reduce waste. This enables smarter, lower-carbon media planning and creates a foundation for credible carbon reduction and offsetting strategies.

Third party verification is no longer optional

As DOOH matures, the expectations around it evolve. Today, success means more than just hitting play. It’s about visibility, responsiveness and performance.

TPV turns what was once a post-campaign audit into a real-time operating system for performance. When you can spot under delivery within hours, not weeks, reallocate spend dynamically, and quantify added value with precision, verification stops being a reporting tool and becomes a competitive advantage.

That’s what’s really at stake here. Not just accountability, but adaptability. Not just transparency, but smarter decision-making. In an environment where attention is scarce and budgets are scrutinised, the ability to course-correct in-flight and the insights to optimise future campaign planning can define whether a campaign is good or becomes the proof point that unlocks the next big spend.