Required tasks by protocol

Consolidated reference of required and optional tasks for each AdCP protocol, organized by agent role.

Required tasks by protocol

Each AdCP protocol defines tasks that agents implement depending on their role. This page consolidates the requirements from each protocol specification into a single reference.

Legend: Required — the specification mandates implementation. Conditional — required when the agent has a specific capability. Optional — the specification recommends but does not mandate.

Some tasks span protocols. For example, list_creative_formats and sync_creatives are defined in the Creative Protocol but also implemented by Media Buy sales agents. These appear under both protocols with a note indicating the source.

Shared

Every AdCP agent, regardless of protocol, implements:

Task	Requirement	Reference
get_adcp_capabilities	Required	Capability discovery

Caller-scope RBAC introspection is not a standalone task. Sellers that support scope introspection return a per-account authorization object on sync_accounts and list_accounts responses. See Accounts Protocol — Caller authorization.

Media Buy Protocol

Sales agent (seller)

Task	Requirement	Notes
get_products	Required	Inventory discovery
list_creative_formats	Required	Format specifications (Creative Protocol task)
create_media_buy	Required	Campaign creation and order confirmation
update_media_buy	Required	Budget, targeting, pause, cancel
get_media_buys	Required	Operational state retrieval
get_media_buy_delivery	Required	Delivery metrics at the package level; reporting_capabilities MUST be included on every product
provide_performance_feedback	Required	Accept buyer optimization signals
sync_creatives	Conditional	Required when the sales agent hosts a creative library (Creative Protocol task)
list_creatives	Optional	Creative catalog browsing (Creative Protocol task)
sync_catalogs	Optional	Product/inventory catalog sync
sync_event_sources	Optional	Conversion tracking setup
log_event	Conditional	Required when event sources are configured
sync_audiences	Optional	First-party CRM audience upload

Sales agents MUST also support at least one transport (MCP or A2A) and declare media_buy in supported_protocols.

Reference: Media Buy Specification · Seller integration guide

Orchestrator (buyer)

Orchestrators are not MCP/A2A servers — they call sales agent tasks. Conformant orchestrators MUST:

1. Authenticate with sales agents
2. Include required fields per request schemas
3. Handle asynchronous task-level responses (submitted, working, input-required) and webhook delivery of completion artifacts
4. Use media_buy_id for all subsequent operations
5. Respect creative_deadline for creative uploads

Reference: Media Buy Specification — Orchestrator conformance

Creative Protocol

Creative agent

Task	Requirement	Notes
list_creative_formats	Required	Format discovery with technical specs
build_creative	Optional	Generation, transformation, or library retrieval
preview_creative	Optional	Preview rendering
list_creatives	Conditional	Required when has_creative_library: true
sync_creatives	Conditional	Required when the agent accepts creative uploads
get_creative_delivery	Optional	Variant-level delivery metrics

Creative agents MUST return authoritative format definitions only for formats they own.

Reference: Creative Specification

Signals Protocol

Signal agent

Task	Requirement	Notes
get_signals	Required	Signal discovery
activate_signal	Required	Signal activation on decisioning platforms

Signal agents MUST enforce access control for private signals and activation keys.

Reference: Signals Specification

Brand Protocol

Brand agent

Task	Requirement	Notes
get_brand_identity	Required	Core identity is public; authorized callers get deeper data
get_rights	Conditional	Required when the agent manages brand rights
acquire_rights	Conditional	Required when the agent manages brand rights
update_rights	Conditional	Required when the agent manages brand rights
creative_approval	Conditional	Required when the agent reviews AI-generated content

Brand agents MUST declare brand in supported_protocols.

Reference: Brand Protocol · Building a brand agent

Accounts Protocol

Any agent accepting accounts

Task	Requirement	Notes
sync_accounts	Conditional	Implicit accounts (require_operator_auth: false) — buyer declares brand/operator pairs
list_accounts	Conditional	Explicit accounts (require_operator_auth: true) — buyer discovers pre-existing accounts
sync_governance	Conditional	Required when the buyer uses campaign governance
report_usage	Conditional	Required when the agent charges for services
get_account_financials	Optional	Financial summary per account

Agents MUST implement at least one of sync_accounts or list_accounts depending on their account model. An agent MAY implement both (e.g., ad networks that use implicit accounts on the buyer side and explicit accounts with underlying platforms).

Reference: Accounts Protocol

Governance: Campaign

Governance agent

Task	Requirement	Notes
sync_plans	Required	Plan creation and amendment
check_governance	Required	Validation at purchase, modification, and delivery phases
report_plan_outcome	Required	Outcome reporting and budget commitment
get_plan_audit_logs	Required	Audit trail retrieval

Reference: Campaign Governance Specification

Governance: Property

Governance agent

Task	Requirement	Notes
create_property_list	Required	List creation with filters
get_property_list	Required	Resolved property retrieval
update_property_list	Required	List modification
delete_property_list	Required	List removal
list_property_lists	Required	List enumeration
validate_property_delivery	Optional	Post-campaign compliance validation

Reference: Property Governance Specification

Governance: Collection

Governance agent

Task	Requirement	Notes
create_collection_list	Required	List creation with collection sources and filters
get_collection_list	Required	Resolved collection retrieval
update_collection_list	Required	List modification
list_collection_lists	Required	List enumeration
delete_collection_list	Required	List removal

Reference: Collection Governance

Governance: Content Standards

Content standards agent

Task	Requirement	Notes
create_content_standards	Required	Standards creation
get_content_standards	Required	Standards retrieval
list_content_standards	Required	Standards enumeration
update_content_standards	Required	Standards modification
calibrate_content	Optional	Seller calibration against standards
validate_content_delivery	Optional	Post-delivery content compliance
get_media_buy_artifacts	Optional	Artifact retrieval for validation

Reference: Content Standards

Governance: Creative

Creative governance agent

Task	Requirement	Notes
get_creative_features	Required	Security scanning, content categorization

Reference: Creative Governance

Sponsored Intelligence Protocol

Brand agent

Task	Requirement	Notes
si_get_offering	Optional	Pre-session offering lookup
si_initiate_session	Required	Session creation with consent
si_send_message	Required	Conversational messaging
si_terminate_session	Required	Session cleanup

Brand agents MUST declare sponsored_intelligence in supported_protocols.

Reference: Sponsored Intelligence Specification

Trusted Match Protocol

TMP uses a different communication model (direct HTTP, not MCP/A2A tasks). See the TMP Specification for message types and conformance requirements.