The term Programmatic media (also known as programmatic marketing or programmatic advertising) encompasses an array of technologies that automate the buying, placement and optimisation of media inventory, in turn replacing human-based methods.[1] In this process, supply and demand partners utilise automated systems and business rules to place advertisements in electronically targeted media inventory.[2] It has been suggested that programmatic media is a fast-growing phenomenon in the global media and advertising industry.[3]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Programmatic_media

Joe Zawadzki, CEO, MediaMath
"The use of technology to automate processes and the use of math to improve results. It is the future of marketing, available now."
Andy Cocker, COO/ Co Founder, Infectious Media
"Programmatic Buying describes online display advertising that is aggregated, booked, flighted, analyzed and optimized via demand side software interfaces and algorithms.
John Nardone, CEO, [x+1]
"Programmatic buying is a subset of programmatic marketing. Programmatic marketing uses real time systems, rules and algorithms to automate the delivery of data driven, targeted and relevant experiences to consumers as they interact with a brand’s many touch points.

DigiDay - What is programmatic ad buying?
“Programmatic” ad buying typically refers to the use of software to purchase digital advertising, as opposed to the traditional process that involves RFPs, human negotiations and manual insertion orders. It’s using machines to buy ads, basically.

KEYS
moving away from focus on media/publisher and towards the audience.

focusing on reaching a targeted audience in a more efficient and cheaper way

using algorithims and artificial intelligence

different messages to different people using geo, weather, time of day, season, context as well as personal data

Us as an agency in the old days

Then Monster and CB made it easy to go direct

Ad networks, aggregators

Programmatic

Good news is that, unlike the travel agency, this process brings us back into play!

when adwords started in 2002 and DoubleClick not long after, the move to programmatic had begun. remember - we were one of the first agencies to embrace this technology and share it with our clients!

Ad Exchange[edit]
Ad exchanges allow practitioners in media to transact in media inventory in an auction-based model. Buyers and sellers allow algorithms to pin point media inventory based on its value with reference to key performance indicators (KPIs).[18]
Real-time Bidding (RTB)[edit]
Real-time bidding (RTB) is an automated method of transacting in media inventory, which is bought and sold via technology platforms such as ad exchanges or supply-side platforms (SSP), in real time. In this process, sellers (publishers) make their inventory available for buyers (advertisers) who bid on the inventory in the marketplace. Parameters set by the advertisers include bid price, network reach, and the type of individual that they are targeting. One of the benefits of this process is the unrivaled opportunity for optimisation.[19]
Private Marketplace (PMP)[edit]
The private marketplace (PMP), also known as a private exchange, is where buyers and sellers interact in a closed environment in order to gain an additional layer of control over the transaction. Media inventoryavailable via a private marketplace (PMP) is limited to premium environments.[20]
Demand-side Platform (DSP)[edit]
Demand-side platforms (DSPs) work as a central hub that connects various data sources into one key platform.[21] DSP's provide an additional layer of control over media inventory via a centralised overview of multiple data sources and in turn create efficiencies in terms of management, reporting and optimisation.[22]

First Party Data[edit]
First party data (1st party data) refers to the data retrieved from customer relationship management (CRM) platforms, in addition to website and paid media content or cross-platform data. This can include data from behaviors, actions or interests.[24]

Second Party Data[edit]
Second party data (2nd party data) refers to an amalgamation of statistics related to cookie pools on external publications and platforms. The data is provided directly from the source (adservers, hosted solutions for social or an analytics platform). It is also possible to negotiate a deal with a particular publisher to secure specific data points or audiences.[25]

Third Party Data[edit]
Third party data (3rd party data) is sourced from external providers and often aggregated from numerous websites. Businesses sell third-party data and are able to share this via an array of distribution avenues.[26]

Ad serving describes the technology and service that places advertisements on web sites. Ad serving technology companies provide software to web sites and advertisers to serve ads, count them, choose the ads that will make the website or advertiser most money, and monitor progress of different advertising campaigns. Ad servers are divided into two types: Publisher ad servers and advertiser (or third party) ad servers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad_serving