Glossary/Audience data/Interest-based advertising
What is interest-based advertising?
How interest-based advertising works, how it relates to behavioral targeting, and what publishers need to offer it.
Written by Samhub with the help of AI·Updated 13 Oct 2026·3 min readInterest-based advertising shows ads based on interests inferred from what a person reads or does, such as travel or home improvement.
How it works
Observe behavior
Topics read over time.
Infer interests
Repeated reading builds an interest profile.
Target ads
Advertisers reach people with that interest.
Interest-based vs related terms
| Term | Based on |
|---|---|
| Interest-based | Inferred interests |
| Behavioral | Past behavior in general |
| Contextual | The current page only |
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Publishers have the signal
Reading behavior on a news site is a strong signal of real interests. With consent, publishers can offer interest audiences on their own data instead of relying on third parties.
Addressability at Stampen Media after moving its reader data into one layer with Samhub.
Frequently asked questions
They are close. Interest-based is a common name for behavioral targeting.
Yes, in Europe, as it uses personal data for advertising.
Some are stable, others last days. Good profiles decay over time.
Yes, through the consent banner at any time.
Related terms
Targeting ads based on what readers have done before.
Targeting ads based on the content of the page.
Showing ads to chosen groups of people.
Grouping readers so advertisers can reach them.
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