In [Real-time Bidding](https://developers.google.com/authorized-buyers/rtb/start), bidders compete in an
auction to place creatives for a given impression. You can use the
[`creatives`](https://developers.google.com/authorized-buyers/apis/realtimebidding/reference/rest/v1/buyers.creatives)
resource to manage your creatives. Here are some ways you can use the
`creatives` resource:

- Submit new creatives for review.
- View the status of existing creatives.
- Update existing creatives.
- Add deals or packages to submit creatives for publisher review.

Creatives from Authorized Buyers must be reviewed to ensure they do the
following before they can serve:

- Follow [Google's policies](https://support.google.com/authorizedbuyers/answer/1325008)
- Align with publisher protections and controls

You can also review the status of creatives for associated buyer accounts
through a [Google Cloud Pub/Sub](https://cloud.google.com/pubsub/docs) subscription.

Here are the steps in the life cycle of a creative:

1. **Creation** : You can use
   [`buyers.creatives.create`](https://developers.google.com/authorized-buyers/apis/realtimebidding/reference/rest/v1/buyers.creatives/create)
   to submit a creative for review.

   > [!NOTE]
   > **Note:** You can only call `buyers.creatives.create` once per creative. To update an existing creative, use [`buyers.creatives.patch`](https://developers.google.com/authorized-buyers/apis/realtimebidding/reference/rest/v1/buyers.creatives/patch).

2. **Review** : Creatives must be reviewed before they can serve. The review
   process takes about 30 minutes and verifies that the creative complies with
   Google's policies. For more information, see [Policy compliance](https://developers.google.com/authorized-buyers/apis/guides/rtb-api/creative-fields#policy_compliance).

   > [!CAUTION]
   > **Caution:** Bids placed with unreviewed creatives are filtered from the auction.

   If you've configured your account to watch for creative status changes,
   a message is logged to a corresponding Google Cloud Pub/Sub subscription for
   every creative status change.

   Google policy review is a separate step from publisher review.
   Publisher review is only required for creatives you intend to place on the
   app or site of a publisher who has enabled creative review.
   Publishers can approve your creatives for use in
   [deals](https://developers.google.com/authorized-buyers/apis/guides/marketplace/deals) or
   [Marketplace packages](https://support.google.com/authorizedbuyers/answer/12817370).
   If a publisher of a deal or package requires this additional review,
   submit the creative using the [`buyers.creatives.addDeals`](https://developers.google.com/authorized-buyers/apis/realtimebidding/reference/rest/v1/buyers.creatives/addDeals)
   method. For more information, see [Add deals to creatives for publisher review](https://developers.google.com/authorized-buyers/apis/guides/rtb-api/buyer-creatives#add_deals_to_creatives_for_publisher_review).
3. **Activation**: Creatives are active immediately after approval. Active
   creatives can be placed in bid responses.
   Bids placed with disapproved creatives are filtered from the auction.

4. **Modification** : After review, you can use
   [`buyers.creatives.patch`](https://developers.google.com/authorized-buyers/apis/realtimebidding/reference/rest/v1/buyers.creatives/patch),
   to update an existing creative. This automatically resubmits the creative for
   review.

5. **Deactivation**: Creatives become inactive after being unused for 15 days.
   Inactive creatives aren't returned by the API. You can reactivate a creative
   by placing a bid with it.