Squeezeback Configuration

Configure account defaults for squeezebacks, then add squeezebacks to a live event before or during the broadcast.

For what a squeezeback is and which formats are supported, see Squeezebacks.

Account Defaults

These defaults apply to all live events unless you override them per event.

Navigation: Settings > Live Events > Squeezebacks tab

Upload Creatives

Upload your assets to the Creatives library before you configure a squeezeback on an event. This applies to Workspace Creatives only. An Ad Server squeezeback pulls its creative from the VAST response and needs nothing uploaded.

Navigation: Content > Creatives

1. Select Content in the left navigation, then select Creatives.
2. Add your files by dragging them in, or select Browse to choose them from your machine.
3. Select Upload.
4. When the upload finishes, the assets appear in the library and are available to any live event on the account.

Creatives are shared across the account, so you can reuse one asset on any number of live events.

Add a Squeezeback to a Live Event

Navigation: Live Events > select your event > Ads tab

The Ads tab lists ad pods and squeezebacks in two separate tables, with the Add Squeezeback panel on the right.

Set Type to Squeezeback rather than Ad Pod. A second Type group then appears for the squeezeback format, along with the fields for that format. Fill them in, select + Add, then save the event.

Name is required. The squeezeback appears in the Squeezebacks table with columns for Creative, Name, Duration, Type, Source, and Ad Server, plus row actions to edit or delete it.

Duration

Duration behaves differently depending on the creative source.

For a Double Box using an uploaded video, a duration shorter than the video truncates the video.

The field accepts HH:MM:SS and several shorthand forms:

The table above lists the input formats the field accepts. In a CSV file, enter the duration as a number of seconds instead.

Event Operation

Manual means you cue and take each squeezeback yourself from the Live Events Dashboard.

Automatic is visible but not yet available. It is intended to run a list of squeezebacks on a set interval or frequency for the length of the event, inserting one automatically on that cadence. Use Manual until Automatic is supported.

L-Shape

1. Set Type to Squeezeback, then set the format Type to L-Shape.
2. Enter a Name.
3. Optionally set a Duration.
4. Under Creative, select Select and choose the L-Shape overlay graphic from your Creatives library.
5. Select + Add, then select Save.

L-Shape supports uploaded creatives only, so no Creative Source appears for it.

The squeezeback appears in the table with its thumbnail, duration, type L-Shape, and source Workspace.

Double Box, uploaded creative

1. Set Type to Squeezeback, then set the format Type to Double Box.
2. Enter a Name.
3. Set Creative Source to Workspace Creatives.
4. Optionally set a Duration. A duration shorter than the video truncates it.
5. Under Double Box Creative, which is required, select Select and choose the video creative.
6. Optionally set a Background Creative. This is the image shown behind both boxes. Without one, your content and the creative composite over black, or over the Default Background Creative if you configured one.
7. Select + Add, then select Save.

Double Box, ad server

1. Set Type to Squeezeback, then set the format Type to Double Box.
2. Enter a Name.
3. Set Creative Source to Ad Server.
4. Select the Ad Server, which is required and must match an ad server configured on your account.
5. Under Key-Value Pairs, which is required, select Add Key for each targeting pair passed to the ad server in the VAST request, for example caid = a1b2c3d4-e5f6-7890-abcd-ef1234567890.
6. Optionally set a Background Creative. It is used when the ad returns no background of its own, and it overrides the account default in Settings > Live Events > Squeezebacks.
7. Select + Add, then select Save.

Duration is not editable here. The panel also shows the boundary type and the playback URL parameter this squeezeback requires for per-session beaconing. See Per-Session Beaconing below.

The squeezeback appears in the table with type Double Box, source Ad Server, and the ad server name.

Import Squeezebacks from CSV

Instead of adding squeezebacks one at a time, import them from a CSV file.

1. With Type set to Squeezeback, select Import CSV. The Bulk Import Squeezebacks dialog opens.
2. Drag your file onto the drop zone, or select browse to choose it. The dialog accepts .csv files only.
3. Select Import. The dialog validates the file and lists every row with its status.
4. Review the results. Each row shows either Ready or the specific problem with that row, such as a creative GUID that does not exist on your account. If any row fails, a message reports how many failed, and nothing is imported until every row passes. Fix your file and upload it again.
5. When every row reads Ready, select Import, which now shows the row count, for example Import 7 Squeezebacks.
6. Select Save to persist the imported squeezebacks.

The results list shows the row number, Name, Type, and Status for each row in the file. The row count on the Import button counts rows in the file rather than rows that passed, so check the statuses rather than the count.

File Format

The header row defines the columns. Column order does not matter, and header names are matched without regard to case.

Add one column per targeting key, naming it with a pt. prefix, for example pt.caid. The cell value becomes that key's value for that row. Which keys you need depends on your ad server configuration. Ad Server rows require at least one key-value pair.

Example

Name,Type,Creative Source,Duration,L-Shape Creative GUID,Double Box Creative GUID,Double Box Background Creative GUID,Ad Server Name,pt.caid,pt.prof
My L-Shape,L-Shape,,30,3b1f8c2a4d5e6f708192a3b4c5d6e7f8,,,,,
DBox with background,Double Box,Uplynk Creative,20,,a1b2c3d4e5f60718293a4b5c6d7e8f90,11223344556677889900aabbccddeeff,,,
DBox no background,Double Box,Uplynk Creative,,,c0ffee1234567890abcdef1234567890,,,,
Ad-server squeezeback,Double Box,Ad Server,,,,,my_ad_server,a1b2c3d4-e5f6-7890-abcd-ef1234567890,123456:example_profile

The creative GUIDs above are placeholders. Replace them with GUIDs from your own Creatives library before you import, or the file fails validation.

Validation Rules

• The whole file must be valid before anything is imported.
• Names must be unique.
• Creative GUIDs must exist in your account's creative library.
• A duration must be a valid number when provided.
• A cell that does not apply to that row's type is reported as an error.

Per-Session Beaconing

For squeezebacks served from an ad server, per-session beaconing registers an ad impression for every viewer device, even though all viewers see the same composited video.

Add this parameter to your playback URL:

boundary.ad-served=beacon_as_ad

The panel shows this exact parameter under Creative Source when you select Ad Server, along with the boundary type it uses. The parameter lets the manifest engine recognize squeezeback boundaries and trigger per-session ad requests.

The boundary name is determined by the creative source, not chosen by you. For an Ad Server squeezeback it is always ad-served, so this parameter is identical on every account and event. Copy it from the panel rather than composing it by hand.

How it works:

• The squeezeback is composited once at the slicer, so every viewer receives the same video.
• Each viewer's manifest session makes its own VAST request using the same targeting parameters.
• The ad server returns beacon URLs per session.
• The system fires impression, quartile, and completion beacons per device as viewers watch the squeezeback.

Squeezebacks use the same ad configuration as your mid-roll ads. No separate ad configuration is required.

An uploaded creative makes no VAST request and needs no playback parameter. The panel shows its boundary type as creatives_library. Uplynk still fires its own beacons for these insertions, and they are reported through the Ads Stats API rather than Ad Inspector.

For the full list of boundary modes, see Boundaries.