For many indie agencies, buying programmatically through the two biggest demand-side platforms has become a fee-stacking puzzle. A 15-person New York shop told Digiday it cleared The Trade Desk’s $100,000 monthly spend bar last summer yet still pays 17% to the DSP and another 12% to Mogl, the reseller it was supposed to outgrow.
“They won’t let us go direct and they won’t change the fees. So we told them, ‘We’re not running with you,’ and we only have very little spend on them now,” an executive with knowledge of the talks said.
The toll booth problem
Ten media buyers who spoke to Digiday on background describe a system where smaller agencies are steered through resellers, told a direct seat will follow once they spend enough. In practice, several say the exit keeps moving.
On The Trade Desk, direct seats come with client-specific commitment levels. Amazon says there is no minimum spend threshold for its DSP. But agency executives say the message they hear in negotiations changes: first push to a reseller, then a minimum, then no minimum.
What stacked fees look like
- New York agency: 17% The Trade Desk fee plus 12% Mogl reseller fee, after clearing the $100,000 monthly bar.
- Washington state agency: 10% reseller fee on top of Amazon’s 15% fee, with little support.
- Texas agency: similar double-layer costs while negotiating a direct Amazon seat.
A direct relationship should remove the intermediary, lowering costs and giving agencies more control. That is exactly what smaller shops say they are being denied.
Why this matters now
Programmatic tensions have been running hot. Publicis had a very public fallout with The Trade Desk in March over fee transparency. On an August 6 earnings call, The Trade Desk CEO Jeff Green argued advertisers are buying on price rather than value, defending its higher upfront costs.
Competition is heating up too; Apple’s moves on Safari identity blocking and its growing ads team signal more change. For indie agencies, the question is whether the DSP landscape becomes more equitable or continues to squeeze them out.
What indie agencies can do
Smaller shops don’t have to accept a permanent reseller toll. Start by auditing every platform and reseller fee line, then press for a committed spend contract that caps costs. Keep challenger DSPs in the mix so you’re not negotiating from a position of dependence.
The buying power is real. The frustration now is that the biggest DSPs don’t always acknowledge it until agencies threaten to walk.
Source: Digiday
