COLOGNE — In Germany, top-tier publishers still exert more collective power over online rivals – but that doesn’t make them immune from their own empowered customers.

In this video interview, video ad management company Videoplaza CEO Sorosh Tavakoli tells Beet.TV ad blocking is a big problem in the country: “We’re seeing up to 50% of some specific publishers being blocked., especially if you have a young and tech-savvy audience.”

Tavakoli offers further insight on the market, where the DMEXCO video conflab was taking place: “The lack of programmatic momentum is almost like an anti-trend. The German market is unique in that publishers have a lot of control – we’re not seeing Germany taking a lead in terms of programmatic.”

But Videoplaza seems to be doing well in the country. “Three years ago, when we set out to move in to the German market, I had many people tell me ‘It’s really difficult to break in to the German market’,” Tavakoli relays.

“We decided to do it right, invest time and adapt the business to the way the German market works. Here we are – Germany is soon going to be our biggest market.”