MMP Integrations
Home / Guides / How MMP and ad network integrations work

How MMP and ad network integrations work

How an MMP connects to an ad network: tracking links, postbacks, self-attributing networks, cost data and why two integrations with the same name can differ.

Short answer

An MMP integration with an ad network has up to four parts: a way to attribute installs (tracking links or a self-attributing API), postbacks that send installs and events back, cost data, and sometimes ad revenue. Two MMPs can both "integrate" with a network and cover different parts.

What is an MMP ad network integration?

An MMP ad network integration is the documented connection that lets a mobile measurement partner credit installs and in-app events to an ad network, and send those results back so the network can report and optimise on them.

Every MMP publishes some form of partner directory: a marketplace, a help centre section or a logo wall. Behind each entry sits a setup page that says what the connection actually does. Across the 16 ad networks in this directory, those pages describe four building blocks.

  • Attribution: how the MMP decides the install came from that network.
  • Postbacks: how the MMP tells the network about installs and events.
  • Cost data: whether spend, clicks and impressions are pulled into the MMP.
  • Ad revenue and audiences: extras some integrations add, such as sending ad revenue for ROAS bidding or sharing audience lists.

How does attribution work for tracking link networks?

Most networks outside the big platforms work through the MMP's tracking link. The flow is the same whichever MMP you use.

  1. You create a tracking link for the network in the MMP and paste it into the network's dashboard. Unity Ads, Moloco, AppLovin, Reddit and InMobi all document this step.
  2. A user taps the ad. The click passes through the MMP's link, which records the click ID and campaign details.
  3. The user installs and opens the app. The MMP's SDK reports the first open, and the MMP matches it to the click.
  4. The MMP sends a postback to the network with the install and, later, the in-app events you chose.

Postback: a server-to-server message from the MMP to the network saying an install or event happened and which click it belongs to.

The details sit in each network's own docs. Reddit puts the MMP's URLs in its impression and click tracker fields and accepts up to 11 events. AppLovin's MMP pages ask for a click-through lookback of at least 7 days and a view-through of at least 1 day. Moloco will not run a campaign until an MMP is configured.

How do self-attributing networks differ?

Self-attributing network (SAN): a network that claims installs itself instead of using the MMP's click links. The MMP sends it install data and the network replies with the installs it claims.

Meta, Google Ads, TikTok, Snapchat, X and Apple Ads work this way in most MMPs' docs. A few practical consequences follow.

  • There is no tracking link to paste. You connect the app and the MMP in each platform instead. Google uses a link ID created for an App Attribution Partner; Apple Ads relies on the AdServices token the MMP's SDK reads on iOS 14.3 and later.
  • The network can claim views. Snap's help says it claims installs after a view or a click, so an MMP may credit a different channel than Snap does.
  • Numbers rarely match exactly. Apple counts App Store verified downloads within 30 days of a tap or 1 day of a view, redownloads included. An MMP usually counts the first app open.

The App Attribution Guide's chapter on self-attributing networks covers how the claim process de-duplicates installs across networks.

Why do two integrations with the same name cover different things?

A directory entry tells you an integration exists, not how deep it goes. The setup pages behind the entries show real differences.

  • Cost data: Branch's ironSource and InMobi pages say cost ingestion is not supported. AppsFlyer's ChatGPT Ads page said there was no cost integration yet, and Branch described its OpenAI cost integration as in progress.
  • Direction of data: Airbridge's Snapchat page covers sending events to Snap through the Conversions API only; it says Snapchat campaign data cannot be imported into Airbridge.
  • Cost only: Singular documents InMobi through a cost data connector, with no attribution guide we could find.
  • Platform limits: AppMetrica's Meta guide covers Android only.
  • One partner at a time: Adjust's X page notes that X integrates with one MMP at a time.

That is why this site marks some cells "Listed, limited". The row on each network page says which part is documented.

What else rides on the integration?

Optimisation signals

The network bids on what it hears back. Google imports in-app events as conversion actions for tCPA or tROAS bidding. Unity's partner docs say its Retention, Payer and Level Complete campaign types require Adjust, AppsFlyer or Singular, because they need specific post-install events. If your MMP cannot send the event a campaign type needs, that campaign type is off the table.

Consent and privacy

Google's App Attribution Partner page says consent status for users in the European Economic Area must be passed before conversions are sent. On iOS, most integrations now include SKAN or AdAttributionKit postbacks next to user-level data.

Ad revenue

Gaming apps that earn from ads often send ad revenue as an event. Unity names ad revenue as a dedicated post-install event, and ironSource's docs describe forwarding MMP ad revenue for full-revenue reporting.

How to read a partner directory

  • Open the setup page, not just the logo. A logo wall can include audience, cost or monetisation partners.
  • Check the date. Kochava's full partner table sits on an older page of its site; Airbridge says its public list shows major channels only.
  • Note the network's own list too. Google, Unity Ads, InMobi and Pinterest name the MMPs they work with on their own help pages.
  • Treat "not listed" as a question, not a no. Airbridge sets some channels up through its customer success team, and Linkrunner runs a tech partner programme that ad networks can apply to.

The glossary entry for self-attributing networks is a good one-page refresher to share with a team new to these terms.

FAQ

Questions

Do I need a separate integration for every ad network?

Yes, in practice. Each network has its own setup in the MMP, whether a tracking link, a link ID or an API connection, and its own choice of which events to send back.

Is a self-attributing network more accurate?

Not necessarily. It has more data about its own users, but it only sees its own ads, so it can claim installs another network also touched. The MMP de-duplicates across networks, which is why its counts are usually lower.

What happens if my MMP does not list a network I want to run?

Ask the MMP whether it can add it through its partner programme. Until then, the network cannot optimise on your in-app events and installs from it may show as organic.

What is an MMP ad network integration?

It is the documented connection between a mobile measurement partner and an ad network: tracking links or API access for attribution, postbacks that send installs and events back to the network, and often cost data. Without it, the network cannot optimise on your in-app events and the MMP cannot credit the network.

What does Not listed mean on this site?

It means we could not find the network in the MMP's public partner directory or help docs when we checked. It does not mean the MMP cannot work with that network: many MMPs add partners on request, so ask the vendor in writing.

What is a self-attributing network?

A self-attributing network (SAN) such as Meta, Google Ads, TikTok or Apple Ads does not use the MMP's click tracking links. The MMP sends it install and event data, and the network replies with whether it claims the install.

Read

More guides