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Understanding the Changes from IAB Content Taxonomy 3.0 to 3.1

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  • avatar
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    Tudor Dan Gabriel
    Twitter

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) recently updated its Content Taxonomy from version 3.0 to 3.1, introducing subtle but important refinements and fixes to better categorize digital content for advertising and audience targeting.

Based on our comparison, the changes are relatively minor but could impact how content is mapped in systems relying on them. However, the IAB didn't release an official changeset detailing all modifications, leaving many in the industry to manually compare the versions.

To bridge this gap, we've analyzed the taxonomy files and compiled a comprehensive list of changes below.

What's Changed in Version 3.1

1. ID 156: Musicals → Musical

  • 3.0: Parent: SPSHQ5 | Name: Musicals | Tiers: Genres > Musical
  • 3.1: Parent: SPSHQ5 | Name: Musical | Tiers: Genres > Musical
  • Change: Fixed the value from “name” by removing the plural 's'. In this way the “name” column is consistent with the “Tier 2” column.

2. ID 376: Public Radio (ID and Hierarchy Fix)

  • 3.0: Parent: 371 | Name: Public Radio | Tiers: Genres > Talk Radio > Public Radio
  • 3.1: Parent: SPSHQ5 | Name: Public Radio | Tiers: Genres > Talk Radio > Public Radio
  • Change: Updated the parent ID from 371 to SPSHQ5, aligning it with the "Genres" top-level category.

3. New ID 700: Thriller (Addition)

  • 3.0: Not present.
  • 3.1: Parent: SPSHQ5 | Name: Thriller | Tiers: Genres > Thriller
  • Change: A new category added under Genres. This expands the taxonomy to include thriller-related content, which was previously unaddressed.

4. ID 388: Political Issues & Policy (Capitalization Correction)

  • 3.0: Parent: 386 | Name: Political Issues & policy | Tiers: Politics > Political Issues & policy
  • 3.1: Parent: 386 | Name: Political Issues & Policy | Tiers: Politics > Political Issues & Policy
  • Change: Capitalized the 'P' in "Policy" for standardization. This is a minor stylistic fix but ensures uniformity.

5. ID 497: Horse Racing (Parent ID Correction)

  • 3.0: Parent: 496 | Name: Horse Racing | Tiers: Sports > Equine Sports > Horse Racing
  • 3.1: Parent: 483 | Name: Horse Racing | Tiers: Sports > Equine Sports > Horse Racing
  • Change: Corrected the parent ID from 496 to 483.

6. ID 602: Software and Applications → Computer Software and Applications

  • 3.0: Parent: 599 | Name: Software and Applications | Tiers: Technology & Computing > Computing > Computer Software and Applications
  • 3.1: Parent: 599 | Name: Computer Software and Applications | Tiers: Technology & Computing > Computing > Computer Software and Applications
  • Change: Renamed for clarity by adding "Computer" prefix.

Note: This analysis is based on a direct diff of the official 3.0 and 3.1 taxonomy files. If additional changes emerge, we'll update this post.

Final thoughts

These updates reflect the IAB's ongoing efforts to refine the taxonomy for accuracy and usability, without overhauling the entire structure. If you're integrating this into ad tech systems, double-check your mappings—especially for parent IDs and new additions like "Thriller"—to avoid disruptions. For the full taxonomy files, visit the IAB Tech Lab website. Have you noticed these changes affecting your workflows? Share your thoughts in the comments!