iGaming Media Glossary: FTD, NGR, CPA, LTV

FTD (First-Time Deposit): A player's first real-money deposit. The unit iGaming media is bought and judged on here, because a registration without a deposit has no commercial value.
NGR (Net Gaming Revenue): Gross gaming revenue minus bonuses, and often minus taxes and fees. The revenue figure most rev-share deals are settled on.
CPA (Cost Per Acquisition): The media cost to produce one FTD. Planned as a per-GEO target band and judged against the decline curve, not a month-one number.
LTV (Lifetime Value): The revenue a player generates over a window, usually shown here as 12-month LTV per GEO. The commercial anchor for setting maximum CPA.
Reg-to-FTD: The conversion rate from registration to first deposit. A key efficiency metric; a channel with cheap registrations but poor reg-to-FTD is expensive per deposit.
Retargeting pool: The cookied audience of prior site visitors. Once built, it produces deposits at roughly a third of blended cold cost and drives the CPA decline curve's floor.
Push / pop traffic: Ad formats delivered as browser push notifications or pop-unders through traffic networks. The cheapest tested route to FTD volume when filtered.
Programmatic: Automated buying of display and native inventory through DSPs, with placement control, retargeting and deep reporting.
DSP (Demand-Side Platform): The platform used to buy programmatic inventory across exchanges. Gambling-friendly DSPs and agency seats are used where mainstream ones exclude the vertical.

Questions operators ask

What does FTD mean in iGaming?

FTD is a first-time deposit: a player's first real-money deposit. It is the unit iGaming media is bought and judged on, because a registration without a deposit has no commercial value.

What is the difference between CPA and LTV?

CPA is the media cost to acquire one depositing player; LTV is the revenue that player generates over a window, usually 12 months. Maximum acceptable CPA is set as a share of 12-month LTV.

iGaming media glossary

Questions operators ask

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