In recent years, the advertising industry has faced growing criticism due to concerns around data privacy, fraud, and inefficiencies. Traditional digital advertising, particularly through intermediaries like Google and Facebook, has led to a lack of transparency for advertisers and publishers alike.

Ben Putley, CEO and Co-Founder of Alkimi Exchange, believes the digital advertising industry is long overdue for a change. Here, he breaks down how blockchain technology is reshaping advertising and why it’s time for the industry to evolve.

The Broken State of Advertising

At its core, digital advertising operates through intermediaries who profit by managing transactions between advertisers and publishers. These intermediaries — ad exchanges, supply-side platforms (SSPs), and demand-side platforms (DSPs) —  not only inflate costs but also introduce vulnerabilities to fraud. Advertisers face an alarming $65 billion in global losses annually due to fraudulent activity, including bot-generated traffic and manipulated metrics.

“Advertisers are essentially pouring money into a system they can’t see or control. Fraud thrives in environments where transparency is missing. The lack of accountability also undermines trust, with advertisers unsure whether their spending translates into meaningful engagement or results,” Ben Putley explained.

Publishers are financially constrained under this system. Although they are responsible for creating the content that draws audiences and fuels the advertising ecosystem, they often see only a small portion of the ad revenue, as intermediaries claim a significant share. This leaves publishers with decreasing profits despite their critical role in the process.

Users fare no better. Most digital advertising platforms treat them as commodities, harvesting their data without consent and inundating them with poorly targeted or intrusive ads. This has led to a rise in ad blockers, with many users opting to avoid ads altogether rather than engage with an ecosystem they don’t trust.

“Users feel exploited, and they’re not wrong. They’re excluded from the value chain while their personal data fuels it,” he added.

Blockchain technology offers an elegant solution to many of these issues by introducing a transparent and decentralized framework for advertising. Unlike the current system, where transactions occur in a black-box environment, blockchain creates a public ledger where every impression, click, and transaction can be verified.

For advertisers, this transparency means real-time visibility into how budgets are being spent and assurance that their investments are reaching actual users rather than bots. For publishers, blockchain ensures they receive fair compensation, as payments are automated and verifiable. Every transaction is logged on a decentralized network, making it auditable and resistant to manipulation.

“Through the Ads Explorer, our proprietary tool, Alkimi provides complete transparency over every ad transaction. Every transaction on Alkimi is validated by a decentralized network of validators and stored on the Ethereum blockchain, ensuring that all spending is fully auditable and eliminating any ambiguity that is common in traditional systems,” Putley said.

The inefficiencies of the current advertising model stem largely from the reliance on intermediaries. These entities take significant cuts of the ad spend, leaving advertisers with higher costs and publishers with lower earnings. Research suggests that nearly half of an advertiser’s budget — around 47% — is absorbed by these fees.

“Decentralized platforms change the economics of advertising. By eliminating intermediaries, we’ve reduced fees to just 3-8%. That’s not just a marginal improvement — it’s transformative,” Putley shared.

This cost-saving benefits both advertisers and publishers. Advertisers can allocate more of their budgets to meaningful engagement, while publishers retain a larger share of the revenue, enabling them to invest in higher-quality content.

Smart contracts are a critical component of this system. These self-executing agreements automate payments between advertisers and publishers based on predefined conditions. For example, a smart contract might trigger payment only when a user interacts with an ad or makes a purchase.

“Smart contracts ensure fairness by removing the need for intermediaries. They execute transactions instantly and without bias, based entirely on the terms agreed upon.  Smart contracts also add a layer of security, as they cannot be altered once deployed, providing an immutable and trustworthy system for all parties,” he noted. 

But decentralization isn’t just about improving transparency and reducing costs — it’s also about empowering users. In the current model, users are passive participants, with no control over how their data is collected or used.

Blockchain flips this narrative, giving users the ability to decide how their data is shared and even rewarding them for their participation.

“Users should have the final say over their data. With decentralization, they can opt-in to share their information in exchange for rewards or keep their data private if they prefer,” Putley asserted.

This user-first approach not only respects privacy but also creates a more ethical and mutually beneficial system. Users who choose to share their data do so transparently and receive compensation, while advertisers gain access to more accurate and engaged audiences. According to Putley, it’s about building trust and creating a system where everyone feels like they’re benefiting.

Challenges to Adoption

Despite its potential, decentralized advertising faces several hurdles. One of the most significant barriers is the steep learning curve associated with blockchain technology.

Many advertisers and publishers are familiar with traditional systems and may hesitate to adopt a model they perceive as complex or unproven.

“The biggest challenge is overcoming inertia. People are naturally resistant to change, even when the benefits are obvious. At Alkimi, we’re addressing this by ensuring our platform is interoperable with existing ad technologies, making the transition as seamless as possible,” Putley said.

To address this, platforms must prioritize education and interoperability. Decentralized systems need to integrate seamlessly with existing workflows, reducing friction for advertisers and publishers making the transition.

Offline events, where Ben and his team showcased their approach, play an important role in driving adoption by demonstrating the practical applications of blockchain technology.

“It’s about making the abstract tangible. We’re showing people that decentralized advertising isn’t just an idea — it’s a working reality,” he noted.

Critics of blockchain often point to its energy consumption and scalability as potential drawbacks. However, advancements in technology have addressed many of these concerns.\

Utilizing Layer-2 scaling solutions helps decentralized platforms process high transaction volumes without the environmental costs associated with earlier blockchain models.

“Advertising is a high-volume industry. We’ve designed our platform to handle that scale efficiently while minimizing energy usage,” Ben acknowledged. 

These improvements make decentralized systems more practical and position them as a greener alternative to traditional advertising, which accounts for a significant portion of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Alkimi’s Vision for the Future

As the advertising industry continues to evolve, the case for decentralization grows stronger. The current model is unsustainable, plagued by inefficiencies, distrust, and ethical shortcomings. Blockchain offers a path forward by addressing these challenges and creating a system built on transparency, efficiency, and fairness.

“We’re still in the early stages, but the momentum is there. Decentralization isn’t just a trend — it’s where the industry is heading,” Putley said.

The success of this shift will depend on continued innovation, particularly in making blockchain systems more accessible and scalable. Platforms must also focus on delivering measurable benefits to advertisers, publishers, and users alike.

For advertisers, this means better ROI and reduced costs. For publishers, it’s about fair compensation and sustainable revenue. And for users, it’s about choice, privacy, and respect.

“Ultimately, it’s about creating a system where everyone wins. That’s what decentralized advertising promises, and it’s what we’re working to deliver,” Ben concluded.