When it comes to mobile advertising, it's a question of balancing scale and quality. 

That's why network BuzzCity is collaborating with a research team from the National University of Singapore's (NUS) School of Computing, to create what it labels 'mathematical models to better identify quality traffic for advertisers, and improve earnings for publishers'.

The announcement follows the appointment of BuzzCity CEO Dr KF Lai as an adjunct associate professor in the faculty.

The university's research team will analyse clickstream data provided by BuzzCity in their study.

Click fraudsters

With cost per click, the dominant model in mobile advertising, there's incentive for ad networks and advertisers to find 'traffic that converts' – that is, clicks that convert into sales.

However, click bots and fraudulent site owners present problems.

Advertisers waste money on fraudulent clicks, while ad networks must devote time and resources to attempts to stamp out the practice.

KF Lai explains, "As mobile traffic and internet advertising grows, click fraud has the potential to diminish the trust of advertisers who otherwise should be getting better returns from their growing mobile budgets."

The payoff

BuzzCity already has a system in place to detect and discard fraudulent clicks before they reach advertisers' accounts. However, it wants to ensure it remains on top of the problem. 

"While it may never be possible to reveal the intent behind a click – whether it is a competitor who has a vested interest in draining its rival's ad spend, or a publisher who wants to earn more money – research like this will help create mathematical models to better identify quality traffic for advertisers," added NUS' Professor Wong Lim Soon.

[source: BuzzCity]