How do we convert ad impressions into GB of data transfer?

Your ad platform or ad-server reporting may provide an estimated average creative file size per impression; multiply this by impression volume, and document the conversion assumption and its source rather than treating the resulting GB figure as directly measured.

Does hosting our own advertising landing pages count here?

No — hosting the landing page itself is a web-hosting activity (see Digital: Web and cloud hosting); this entry covers the advertising placement or impression itself, not the destination page's infrastructure.

Our media agency buys both digital and print placements under one campaign — how do we split activity data?

Ask the agency for a channel-level breakdown of spend or impressions; record the digital portion (GB or minutes) here and the print/outdoor portion under Advertising, rather than allocating the whole campaign to one entry.

Is streamed digital radio and TV advertising recorded the same way as terrestrial broadcast?

Yes, provided the placement is measured in minutes of airtime by your media buyer; the sub-types here (DAB radio, DTT) reflect specific measured campaigns, so use the closest match or the platform's general digital advertising average if your format differs.

What if we only have total agency spend with no impression or airtime data?

Record spend as an interim measure and note the data-quality limitation; request impression or airtime-level reporting from your agency for future campaigns, since GB and minutes are the preferred units for this entry.

Activity data·IT & digital

How to measure emissions from Digital advertising

Digital advertising activity data covers purchased online advertising such as social media impressions and digital radio or TV placements, measured in GB or minutes under Scope 3 Category 1. It differs from the general Advertising entry, which covers non-digital or spend-aggregated campaigns. Source impression and airtime figures from ad-platform dashboards or media-buyer reports, splitting mixed digital and traditional campaigns between the two entries.

Scope: Scope 3 Category 1
What activity data you need: GB, minute
Activity data: IT & digital

What counts as Digital advertising

Digital advertising services purchased by the organisation, measured by data volume (GB) or duration (minutes) — for example social media image and video impressions, and digital radio or TV advertising placements. Excludes non-digital advertising (see Advertising) and the organisation's own website or app hosting (see Digital: Web and cloud hosting).

Digital advertising is measured differently from most purchased-goods entries because the underlying activity is data transfer and viewing time rather than mass or spend — GB for image/video impressions and minutes for broadcast-style formats such as digital radio or TV slots. This differs from the broader Advertising entry, which covers non-digital or spend-aggregated advertising campaigns; if a campaign spans both digital and traditional channels, split the spend or activity between the two entries rather than recording the whole campaign once.

How to collect the data

Ad-platform reporting (social media managers, ad-server dashboards) typically exports impressions and, in some cases, estimated data transfer per impression, which can be converted to GB; broadcast-style digital placements (DAB radio, DTT) are usually billed and reported in minutes of airtime by the media buyer or agency. Where your agency only reports spend, use that as an interim measure but flag it, since digital advertising factors are activity-based (GB, minutes) rather than spend-based.

What activity data you need

Collect the most specific physical unit available. Unit definitions are in Appendix I — Description of Units.

GB
minute

Which emission scope it falls under

Digital advertising activity data typically maps to Scope 3 Category 1 under the GHG Protocol. Confirm organisational boundary and ownership before reporting.

Scope 3 Category 1

By emission scope

Scope 3 Category 1

Compliance frameworks

Compliance & reporting frameworks

Sub-types available in the platform

All 4 sub-types available in the platform.

Radio advertising: DAB: Malta
Social media: Image impressions
Social media: Video Impressions
TV advertising: DTT: Malta

Common questions

How do we convert ad impressions into GB of data transfer?: Your ad platform or ad-server reporting may provide an estimated average creative file size per impression; multiply this by impression volume, and document the conversion assumption and its source rather than treating the resulting GB figure as directly measured.
Does hosting our own advertising landing pages count here?: No — hosting the landing page itself is a web-hosting activity (see Digital: Web and cloud hosting); this entry covers the advertising placement or impression itself, not the destination page's infrastructure.
Our media agency buys both digital and print placements under one campaign — how do we split activity data?: Ask the agency for a channel-level breakdown of spend or impressions; record the digital portion (GB or minutes) here and the print/outdoor portion under Advertising, rather than allocating the whole campaign to one entry.
Is streamed digital radio and TV advertising recorded the same way as terrestrial broadcast?: Yes, provided the placement is measured in minutes of airtime by your media buyer; the sub-types here (DAB radio, DTT) reflect specific measured campaigns, so use the closest match or the platform's general digital advertising average if your format differs.
What if we only have total agency spend with no impression or airtime data?: Record spend as an interim measure and note the data-quality limitation; request impression or airtime-level reporting from your agency for future campaigns, since GB and minutes are the preferred units for this entry.

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Related in this cluster·IT & digital