Bid.protocol

The video or audio protocol of the markup, such as VAST 4.0 or a VAST wrapper, as a value from the AdCOM Creative Subtypes list for audio and video. Added in 2.4.

CurrentintegerOptionalSince 2.4

Field facts

Path: seatbid.bid.protocol
Object: Bid
Type: integer
Requirement: Optional
Added: OpenRTB 2.4
Values: AdCOM list Creative Subtypes - Audio/Video
Spec section: 4.2.3

How it is used

It should be one of the protocols the impression accepts in Video.protocols or Audio.protocols. Do not confuse it with Video.protocol, the single-valued request field that 2.6 removed.

Allowed values

Value	Meaning
`1`	VAST 1.0: VAST 1.0 inline documents; the oldest entry and rare in current traffic.
`2`	VAST 2.0: VAST 2.0 inline documents, still a common baseline for web players.
`3`	VAST 3.0: VAST 3.0 inline documents, which introduced ad pods, skip offsets, and standard error codes.
`4`	VAST 1.0 Wrapper: VAST 1.0 Wrapper: a VAST 1.0 response that redirects to another VAST document.
`5`	VAST 2.0 Wrapper: VAST 2.0 Wrapper: a VAST 2.0 response that redirects to another VAST document.
`6`	VAST 3.0 Wrapper: VAST 3.0 Wrapper: a VAST 3.0 response that redirects to another VAST document.
`7`	VAST 4.0: VAST 4.0 inline documents, added to the list in OpenRTB 2.4.
`8`	VAST 4.0 Wrapper: VAST 4.0 Wrapper, added in OpenRTB 2.4.
`9`	DAAST 1.0: DAAST 1.0 inline, the separate audio template; audio support moved into VAST as of 4.1.
`10`	DAAST 1.0 Wrapper: DAAST 1.0 Wrapper: a DAAST response that redirects to another DAAST document.
`11`	VAST 4.1: VAST 4.1 inline documents, the version that brought audio into VAST. An AdCOM addition.
`12`	VAST 4.1 Wrapper: VAST 4.1 Wrapper. An AdCOM addition.
`13`	VAST 4.2: VAST 4.2 inline documents. An AdCOM addition.
`14`	VAST 4.2 Wrapper: VAST 4.2 Wrapper. An AdCOM addition.
`15`	VAST 4.3: VAST 4.3 inline documents, the newest version in the list. An AdCOM addition.
`16`	VAST 4.3 Wrapper: VAST 4.3 Wrapper. An AdCOM addition.

Example

Where the field sits in a payload, with everything else left out:

{
  "seatbid": [
    {
      "bid": [
        {
          "protocol": 7
        }
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Common mistakes

Declaring an inline VAST version for markup that is really a wrapper. The list has separate values for wrappers.

Version history

Added in OpenRTB 2.4, and present in the latest snapshot. The table shows how each version's spec text types the field.

Versions	Type in the spec	Required	Deprecated
2.4 to 2.5	integer List 5.8.	No	No
2.6-202210 to 2.6-202303	integer	No	No
2.6-202309 to 2.6-202606	integer	No	No

Related fields

Other Bid fields

For a walkthrough of the whole object, read Bid response anatomy.