Reference library · Inventory pricing
Rate Card
A rate card is the seller's published list price for a unit of advertising inventory, such as a spot, placement, or package, before any negotiation. It functions as the reference point from which buyer and seller negotiate a discount, and that discount produces the net price actually invoiced. Sellers set and revise rate cards by period, usually annually or by season, broken out by placement type, daypart, format, or position.
Formula
Worked example
A regional Polish TV channel publishes a rate card of PLN 18,000 for a 30-second prime-time spot (19:00-23:00). An agency with an annual volume commitment negotiates 40% off card. Net price = 18,000 x (1 - 0.40) = PLN 10,800 per spot. For a flight of 20 spots that is PLN 216,000 against a card value of PLN 360,000, and that PLN 144,000 gap is what shows up as savings in the client's post-buy report.
How it is used
Rate cards anchor negotiation rather than set the transaction price; almost no buyer pays card rate. Sellers revise the card season to season and sometimes inflate it specifically so the quoted discount looks larger without moving the net rate. Buyers use the card as a stable basis to track discount depth and year-over-year rate inflation on the same inventory, not as a price to accept at face value.
The common mistake
The mistake is judging a deal by the size of the discount off card instead of the resulting net rate, since sellers can inflate the card price to manufacture a bigger discount without lowering the actual cost.