Prepare for SDK v20

There are many breaking changes coming in version 20.0.0. Version 19.7.0 introduced many new APIs, and deprecated or renamed many classes in preparation for version 20.0.0. This guide highlights the major changes brought about in version 19.7.0 as well as what's coming for version 20.0.0 (early 2021).

Full-screen format API updates

Starting with version 20.0.0, interstitial, rewarded, rewarded interstitial, and App Open ad formats are standardized to follow a consistent API design.

All full-screen format APIs utilize the following principles:

• A static load method
• A similar load callback or handler mechanism
• Reliance on the FullScreenContentCallback class for presentation callbacks

Legacy RewardedVideoAd API removal

The newer RewardedAd API was first introduced back in March 2019 and has been the preferred rewarded API for over 18 months. It has had more enhancements compared to the legacy RewardedVideoAd API, including the ability to load more than one rewarded ad at a time.

The legacy RewardedVideoAd API is removed in SDK version 20.0.0.

Smart banner deprecation in favor of adaptive banner

Smart banner ads are deprecated in favor of adaptive banner ads. Adaptive banners provide superior performance and more flexibility in setting ad width. If you prefer to continue using full-width banners, that can still be done using adaptive banner, as shown in the following code snippet:

public class MyActivity extends AppCompatActivity {
  ...
  private AdSize getFullWidthAdaptiveSize() {
    Display display = getWindowManager().getDefaultDisplay();
    DisplayMetrics outMetrics = new DisplayMetrics();
    display.getMetrics(outMetrics);

    float widthPixels = outMetrics.widthPixels;
    float density = outMetrics.density;

    int adWidth = (int) (widthPixels / density);
    return AdSize.getCurrentOrientationAnchoredAdaptiveBannerAdSize(this, adWidth);
  }
}

class MyActivity : AppCompatActivity() {
  ...
  private val adaptiveAdSize: AdSize
    get() {
      val display = windowManager.defaultDisplay
      val outMetrics = DisplayMetrics()
      display.getMetrics(outMetrics)

      val density = outMetrics.density

      var adWidthPixels = ad_view_container.width.toFloat()
      if (adWidthPixels == 0f) {
        adWidthPixels = outMetrics.widthPixels.toFloat()
      }

      val adWidth = (adWidthPixels / density).toInt()
      return AdSize.getCurrentOrientationAnchoredAdaptiveBannerAdSize(this, adWidth)
    }
}

Leave application callback removal

The onAdLeftApplication callback for all ad formats has been removed in favor of ProcessLifecycleOwner. Using an OS-level API notifies you whenever users leave your app, regardless of whether or not it is due to an ad interaction.

Note that the onAdLeftApplication callback was never intended to be an ad click handler, and relying on this callback to report clicks did not produce an accurate metric. For example, a click on the AdChoices icon that launched an external browser invoked the callback but did not count as a click.

Class renames

The table below lists specific class names that have changed or been removed. In summary:

• Most classes related to UnifiedNativeAd have been renamed to NativeAd.
• The MobileAds.Settings, NativeExpressAdView, NativeAppInstallAd, NativeContentAd, and InstreamAd classes and views have been removed.
• All classes with the Publisher prefix have been replaced with an AdManager prefix.
• The InterstitialAd package name has changed.

Methods removed/replaced

The table below lists the specific changes in version 20.0.0. In summary:

• Outdated initialization methods have been removed from the MobileAds class.
• Some methods from the AdRequest.Builder() class have either been removed or moved to the RequestConfiguration class.
• RewardedAd and InterstitialAd APIs have been updated to align with all full-screen formats.
• Correlator features have been removed.