Right, its basically just inserting the publisher as a man in the middle and coming up with a decent enough validation scheme. And I don't think the current system is perfect, so the bar not be any higher - seems like right now its easy to fake impressions with scrapers/virtual devices etc.
Indeed, there are many things that could be improved about the current system. I am personally hoping that the uptake in ad blocking software will lead publishers to diversify their revenue streams and find better ways to monetize their content. Companies like Blendle are making great progress in that direction and I hope we will see more innovation in that space.
