App publishers leverage multiple ad placement types to monetize their users. Banner, Native, Interstitial, Rewarded, Pre-Roll / Mid-Roll / Post-Roll (In-Stream video) to name some of the most common ones.

Amongst these ad placements, we have what we call Full-Screen placements, composed mainly of Interstitial and Rewarded. These ad placements are characterized by being both highly flexible, allowing for different creative types such a static image, interactive ads (HTML) or video + endcard, as well as being highly impactful, with higher click-through rates than other ad formats.

In the following article, we will explore the main characteristics and differences between these two ad placements, as well as point out the different rendering assets that compose the creative experience.

Interstitial ad placements are usually placed during transition points on the app lifecycle, for example, when completing a level on a gaming app or navigating to a new page on a weather app. Placing an ad on these instances makes it more likely for users to welcome and engage with the ad.

Interstitials consist of a full-screen experience, skippable after a certain amount of time has passed, usually 5 seconds, but these may vary by exchange, with some providing a 3 second skip delay (Chartboost) while other provide an 8 second skip delay (AppLovin).

Interstitial placements also allow for companion ads, also referred as endcards. When the original creative is skipped or, in the case of video, finishes playing, an endcard will be displayed, the latter being a static image or rich media endcard (HTML).

Similar to the main creative, these endcards are closable after a certain period of time, ranging from 0 seconds (skippable right away) to 5s/6s.

Rewarded ad placements are presented to the user at times of much need, offering the user a reward in exchange for opting in to watch a video creative. While most commonly used on gaming apps, they can also be leveraged on non-gaming apps such as dating apps.

Rewarded Video ad placements provide a user experience very similar to Interstitial ad placements, with the exception that, due to the opt-in nature of the ad in exchange for a reward, the video is non-skippable during the first 30 seconds.

Rewarded video placements also support endcards, yet these do not count towards the 30s minimum requirement. Once the video ends, or the user skips after 30s, the user is presented with the endcard and can already claim the in-app reward.

Interstitial and Rewarded ad placements have different elements or assets that make up the creative experience provided to the user. In the following section we will explore each of these elements and how they can vary.

What area of the video creative is clickable? There are 2 possible options:

As of September 2023, all major SDK exchanges have moved to Full Screen clickable areas.

How long do I have to wait till I can skip the ad?

Skip delays are sometimes accompanied by a timer where the skip button will appear once the required time comes to pass.

Where is the skip button located and what shape does it have?

Video creatives running on Interstitial or Rewarded ad placements are usually rendered with some additional assets, these most commonly being:

iOS provides a suit of features that allow for a more native and potentially highly engaging experience.

A native inline banner displayed over the video for user acquisition campaigns, usually appearing 5 seconds into the video. Contains the app details and a download button.

Upon completing or skipping the video, the inline storeview is automatically called over the endcard, providing an additional instance for the user to interact with the ad.

An additional endcard, built from the advertised app’s assets, displayed after skipping the original endcard.

Endcards exhibit many of the same assets as the video creative, yet, the configuration may differ between the video and the endcard.