Video.protocols

The VAST versions the player accepts, as integers from AdCOM List: Creative Subtypes - Audio/Video, with separate values for inline documents and wrappers. Recommended since it arrived in 2.2 to replace the single-value Video.protocol.

Currentinteger arrayRecommendedSince 2.2

Field facts

Path: imp.video.protocols
Object: Video
Type: integer array
Requirement: Recommended
Added: OpenRTB 2.2
Values: AdCOM list Creative Subtypes - Audio/Video
Spec section: 3.2.7

How it is used

Values run from 1 (VAST 1.0) to 16 (VAST 4.3 Wrapper). Each VAST version has an inline code and a wrapper code, and buyers that return wrapper tags look for the wrapper code. Values 9 and 10 are DAAST, an audio format. List only the versions the player or stitcher can parse: a version mismatch produces an impression that is won and never renders.

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:

{
  "id": "req-1",
  "imp": [
    {
      "video": {
        "protocols": [
          2,
          3,
          5,
          6,
          7,
          8,
          11,
          12
        ]
      }
    }
  ]
}

Common mistakes

Listing inline versions such as 3 and 7 without their wrapper values 6 and 8, which shuts out bidders that serve wrapper tags.
Sending the singular Video.protocol instead. It was deprecated in 2.3 and removed in 2.6.
Leaving the field out, so bidders guess which VAST version the player parses.

Version history

Added in OpenRTB 2.2, 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
2.2	array of integers	Recommended	No
2.3 to 2.4	integer array	Recommended	No
2.5	integer array	Recommended	No
2.6-202210 to 2.6-202606	integer array	Recommended	No