The Interactive Advertising Bureau’s (IAB) Ad Operations Council and Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence have published the final version of HTML5 for Digital Advertising 1.0: Guidance for Ad Designers & Creative Technologists.

The document is designed to address some the issues that have arisen as the interactive ecosystem turns increasingly to HTML5 to scale mobile advertising across various digital screens. It deals with the challenges inherent in leveraging HTML5 ad code, while providing a series of time and cost-saving recommendations on topics including HTML5 display ad units (non-rich media); file and ad unit size; code and asset compression; in-banner video advertising and animation; efficient ad creative packaging; and ad server compatibility communication recommendations.

Initially released for public comment in early May, HTML5 for Digital Advertising 1.0 received significant feedback in regard to file size limits, with members raising concerns that the proposed limit would restrict HTML5’s key benefits, such as responsive design and accessibility of external files like JavaScript libraries through content delivery networks. As a result, IAB removed file size guidance and simply recommends that creative developers and technologists consult with their publisher and vendor partners on acceptable limits.

“With cross-screen campaigns becoming the norm, it is critical that we craft a uniform framework for HTML5 ad optimization,” said Steve Sullivan, vice president, ad technology at the IAB. “HTML5 technology is being rapidly adopted in the marketplace, but the code comes with its own set of issues and impediments that need to be confronted. This guidance helps break through those barriers, promoting a level of performance and functionality that not only improves the HTML5 experience for marketers, creative designers, publishers, and other industry stakeholders, but elevates the experience for consumers as well.”