Bryan Szekely, Head of Ad Strategy- Sigma Software
On April 17th, Sigma Software Group announced its involvement in the development of Prebid Mobile 3.0. As the launch of Prebid Mobile 3.0 marks a pivotal step forward for mobile header bidding, it’s important to recognize the players making it possible.
Sigma Software has been instrumental in bringing this release to life, both in the engineering trenches and in helping drive the open-source roadmap. To spotlight the significance of this milestone and the partnership behind it, I sat down with Bryan Szekely to discuss what’s new, why it matters, and what’s next for mobile monetization.
Whether you’re a publisher, developer, or just trying to keep pace with the evolution of Prebid, this is a quick primer straight from the folks doing the work.
Rob Beeler: How much of a change is Prebid Mobile 3.0 from previous versions?
Bryan Szekely: Prebid SDK 3.0 builds upon the Prebid SDK’s existing functionality, adding several new feature enhancements to give publishers more control over their ad stack, enhanced video support, and improved addressability. With these new feature sets, publishers will receive the following benefits: increased integration use-cases and control over rendering ads; expanded video options for publishers to monetize, including interstitial, outstream, and rewarded ads; and flexibility in managing user experience with SKOverlay.
Publishers will also gain control of ad hoc client-side OpenRTB signaling, giving buyers a richer set of impression attributes. The release includes support for the latest Apple privacy framework, SKAdNetwork, as well as support for Prebid Shared ID, giving buyers the ability to frequency cap users on a per-session basis. Additional updates include enhancements to impression tracking and a richer set of ad format features. These new features lay the groundwork for future enhancements, opening the door to a broader set of publishers.
Beeler: What do you personally find the most exciting new capability now available to app developers?
Bryan: Our favorite feature is the rendering delegate feature. The Prebid SDK is maturing in its product development support, no longer relying on third-party ad servers or mediation platforms to render ads. Giving publishers more control over the ad rendering experience will enable additional use cases for downloading and integrating the Prebid SDK.
Beeler: Could you explain the significance of the 'Rendering Delegation' feature in the new release?
Bryan: Before the Prebid SDK 3.0, ad rendering was constrained by the Prebid Universal Creative and the web views provided by Google Ad Manager or supported mediation platforms.
With the introduction of Rendering Delegation in Prebid SDK 3.0, control of ad rendering can now be handed off to the publisher or a third-party renderer. This unlocks the ability to build custom rendering solutions, enabling tighter integration into native app UI, creative sandboxing, custom analytics hooks, and more.
The goal is for Rendering Delegation to make Prebid SDK flexible and robust enough to support a broader range of publisher needs, ultimately enabling the development of more diverse and integrated ad experiences.
Beeler: How does Prebid Mobile 3.0 integrate with Apple's SKAdNetwork and support iOS-specific features like SKOverlay?
Bryan: SKAdNetwork (SKAN) is Apple’s privacy-preserving attribution framework for mobile app install campaigns. It enables ad networks and advertisers to measure the effectiveness of ads without user-level tracking, replacing the traditional use of IDFA (Identifier for Advertisers) after the introduction of App Tracking Transparency (ATT) in iOS 14. Prebid SDK has supported SKAN since the inception of the SKAdNetwork 1.0 framework, however, with the Prebid SDK 3.0 release, Prebid SDK now supports the latest version of SKAN 4.0.
SKOverlay is a native iOS framework introduced by Apple that enables an app to display a floating App Store install banner (similar to a mini card or full-screen overlay) without leaving the app. It’s especially useful in SKAN attribution flows, particularly for view-through or StoreKit-rendered ads.
Prebid SDK 3.0 with added SKOverlay support, allows for demand partners to trigger an SKOverlay natively, comply with SKAN requirements for attribution, and provide a seamless user experience, allowing users to continue with the current app while viewing install details vs being redirected to Safari or the App Store.
Beeler: What was it like to collaborate with Prebid on this development?
Bryan: Prebid SDK is a community-driven project, so working on it means you're not just building for your own company, you’re contributing to a shared foundation that benefits the entire ecosystem. The contributions of all participants are what accelerate the project.
That collaborative spirit is part of what makes Prebid special. You’re often working side by side with peers, partners, and even competitors to solve common challenges. Things like transparency, interoperability, and scale in privacy-first solutions, all while creating a level playing field where no single company has an advantage from a product perspective.
It also creates a high bar for engineering quality. Contributions have to meet the needs of many, not just one. Sigma Software is a neutral participant in Prebid, building solutions for all types of entities. We are excited to be a part of shaping the direction of open-source advertising, showcasing our engineering expertise through our engineering contributions and leadership, as we chair two committee positions.
Beeler: What should App developers know when implementing this SDK? Is there anything they should decide before they begin the process?
Bryan: Implementing Prebid SDK 3.0 requires a few key decisions upfront. The most important decision is choosing between the default rendering and rendering delegation, where your app takes full control of how ads are displayed. Delegating rendering offers flexibility and customization, but it also means you’re responsible for building the ad UI and handling events like clicks and impressions.
Developers should also be ready to remove deprecated API features and add the new API features. (You can learn more about those features here.)
Beeler: What should app developers ask of their adtech partners to make the most of 3.0?
Bryan: When working with external vendors, especially those that provide wrapper management services, app developers should inquire about the features exposed in their platforms and how they are made available. Some examples of features you may inquire about are: do you support ad rendering delegation, and if so, how? How do you support SKAdNetwork and SKOverlay? What consent parameters do you require?
App environment updates are not an immediate task, and some users may never receive SDK updates. For this reason, app developers should ensure they have all the documentation and tools available from adtech partners before pursuing an integration or upgrade.
Beeler: If someone is interested in learning more, what’s the best way to start a conversation with your team?
Bryan: Great question. For those with questions or inquiries how they can engage with us, please reach out to us at adtech@sigma.software. We are very excited about the release of Prebid SDK 3.0 and look forward to publishers and tech vendors helping define product roadmaps and supporting integrations into their environments.