Shine Goes from Ad Blocking to Verification with Rainbow Rebrand

Shine, the Israeli firm that has been provoking controversy since it first announced its network-level ad block offering in May 2015, has rebranded. The new name, Rainbow, brings with it a complete refocus for the business. It is now positioning itself as a ‘consumer ad experience’, using its existing technology – which will no longer be sold as an ad blocking solution to networks – as a way of serving only ‘verified’ ads to users.

Customers of partnered networks and ISPs – the only one announced so far being Three – will be able to opt into Rainbow’s service in order to be shown only those ads which have successfully passed through its verification process. These ads will be tested using industry standards like the IAB’s LEAN and Flex, and those which don’t pass muster will be blocked at the network level, in the same way that Shine previously threatened to do with all ads.

The company’s adoption of these standards might be a little surprising, given Shine’s past relationship with the IAB. In November 2015, it took out a full-page ad in the Financial Times aimed specifically at the industry body, and IAB CEO Randall Rothenburg struck back at an event the following January, claiming Shine violated net neutrality laws.

In its new incarnation as Rainbow, the company seems eager to play nice with the ad industry it previously seemed to delight in provoking. It stresses that this offering has been developed in collaboration with agencies and publishers alike, and has joined the Mobile Marketing Association, with plans to join other industry bodies.

Surprising as this about-face may be, the announcement isn’t an entirely unexpected development. The launch of a brand safety platform was first mentioned last July (along with an intended launch date of October 2016) when Shine hired ex-AdTruth MD James Collier as its chief revenue officer.

Rainbow, née Shine, remains insistent that this rebrand is not a pivot for the business, and has always been part of its long-term plan. So how does it account for this sharp change in attitude, from provocateur to collaborator?

“Controversy is designed to elicit a response – and in that respect it was very successful,” Collier told Mobile Marketing. “The focus of the business now is on creating an attainable solution for the advertising marketplace that puts the trust and consent of people first.”

And what about the relationship Rainbow seems to be trying to build with the ad industry it has spent the last two years in conflict with? How has it been pitching this new offering to them?

“Trust and consent is everyones concern – it opens doors,” said Collier. “In this instance it means we can offer unparalleled network-level insights, combined with rich, deep targetable data and true identity. More plainly were increasing value for all stakeholders. Agencies and brands get greater levels of accountability and publishers get more deterministic tools to achieve feature parity with large single sign-on environments.”

Those tools are where Rainbow intends to make money from the ad industry. Publishers and advertisers will be able to opt in for verification for free, but if they want access to insights on audience and campaign performance, they’ll have to pay for it.

Thats not the case for the MNOs and ISPs it is hoping to partner with, however. Not only will they not be charged, but Rainbow says it will be sharing revenue with its partners – though no further details were given at this point. In spite of the revenue share, Rainbow still faces some resistance from the operators, Collier admitted.

“Convincing carriers that ad blocking and ad injection is a bad path is not as easy as youd think, particularly given that they typically feel they give a lot to the ad industry and get very little back,” he said. “Our work is mainly focused on proving that the model works. That they can continue to help propagate the free content model – because you cant tell a carrier or ISP that the internet is free – while harmoniously generating revenue from advertising and delivering on a better consumer experience.”

Its worth noting that Rainbow only has one public partner on board currently, Three. Its also worth noting that Three has a wide international presence, operating in 10 countries across Europe, Asia and Oceania. For now, though, only Three UK has committed to rolling out Rainbow. It was also the only MNO in the UK to adopt Shines ad blocking technology, running a one-week trial last June before abandoning plans to take it further, admitting it “pissed off” the likes of Google and Ofcom.

Whether Rainbow has a longer future with Three – and whether its offering will manage to attract more partners than Shines – remains to be seen. But this is certainly an interesting new chapter for the company that originally made its name picking fights with the ad industry.