For most of the last decade, performance marketing was rewarded for momentum. Spend efficiently. Scale quickly. Optimize continuously. If the line went up and to the right, few questions followed. But that era is ending, because performance without accountability is no longer credible.
AI in advertising has gone from a buzzword to a full disruptor in what feels like just a few months. If CES was any indication, there is no sign of this slowing down.
Programmatic’s biggest promise was never automation for its own sake. It was accountability. But today, the industry is moving from reporting performance to steering performance.
When measurement systems are optimized for transactions rather than enterprise value, marketing is forced to justify spend instead of leading growth.
Political advertising has always evolved alongside media consumption. But the shift from linear television to streaming has introduced challenges that campaign managers are still working to navigate. While connected TV (CTV) promises precision and flexibility, the reality facing political advertisers today is far more complex and less standardized.
Viewers aren’t just watching streaming content anymore; they’re living in it. And while they’re streaming, they’re telling us something important about how they want to experience advertising. They want to do more than watch; they want to engage.
Programmatic media buying is expected to account for the majority of growth in the CTV market in 2026. This year alone, over 90% of CTV ad dollars were transacted through programmatic pipes. That data isn’t surprising. Programmatic has solved a real problem by helping brands reach TV viewers with targeted precision at much lower costs.
CTV isn’t an emerging channel anymore. It’s a fully established, essential part of the media mix. Advertisers now understand its reach, flexibility and ability to drive measurable outcomes.
Marketers used to wait for obvious signals, like a product page view, a cart add or a keyword search, before triggering campaigns. But in today’s fractured landscape, those signals can arrive too late.
Mobile apps are now at the center of the consumer relationship. They’re where customers browse, buy, stream, check balances and redeem loyalty rewards. However, app measurement remains one of the weakest links in modern marketing.
There’s a paradox at play in how marketers are adopting artificial intelligence.
Eighty-seven percent of US advertisers say they plan to increase AI usage over the next 12 months. But only 45% feel confident in their understanding of how AI-powered technologies work. That 42-point gap is an indicator of early friction in AI adoption.
As artificial intelligence transforms advertising analytics, many organizations are rushing to adopt AI tools, hoping for a “magic button” that instantly democratizes data access.
Performance marketers are turning to AI to navigate rising costs, data loss and increasingly complex shopper journeys – and it’s working. Creative is more personalized, targeting is sharper and optimization happens in real time.
Take a moment to think about how your day sounds. Maybe you start with the sound of your alarm, followed by a quick news briefing from your smart speaker while you scroll through emails. Your favorite podcast keeps you company during your commute. Your to-go playlist helps you get in the zone at the gym.
AI has raised the bar for what qualifies as “good data.”
The conversation is no longer about how much data marketers can collect but how well that data reflects reality. In this new era, success depends on data that is accurate, fresh, consented and interoperable – principles that ensure AI models learn from accuracy.
Every conversation about addressability eventually lands on the same word: fragmentation. But the real symptom of that fragmentation isn’t just operational complexity; it’s also declining match rates. That single number explains why marketers are struggling to make their data work.
Most of what’s sold as “contextual” today still runs on the same keyword logic we used a decade ago. The industry didn’t reinvent contextual targeting; it simply replaced one keyword with a cluster.
Consumers don’t experience media in silos. They might stream a live game on their TV, scroll social feeds during halftime and research products on their mobile device later that night.
As the digital advertising industry enters a new phase of maturity, so does its relationship with data. Going into 2026, marketers’ long-standing obsession with scale is giving way to something more grounded: a push for smarter, actionable, owned data.
Artificial intelligence has become marketing’s favorite headline. Every platform, publisher and technology partner now promises “AI-powered” solutions that will make campaigns smarter, faster and cheaper.
Publishers, brands and agencies today are navigating a new landscape. With rising consumer expectations and evolving regulations, delivering personalized campaigns requires a fresh approach.
Viamedia has transformed into Viamedia.ai, a next-generation ad tech company built to solve the challenges of today’s fragmented media ecosystem. The firm has rebranded as Viamedia.ai while also introducing a fresh AI-powered platform built from the ground up to effectively manage campaigns and represent providers across traditional linear, streaming and digital channels. New capabilities available […]
A quarter of all Connected TV (CTV) bid requests can’t be trusted.
That doesn’t mean fraud every time. Sometimes, it’s incomplete data. Sometimes, it’s oversimplified or mislabeled content. And sometimes, it’s more intentional misrepresentation. But the effect is the same: Advertisers don’t know if they’re getting what they paid for and publishers can’t be sure they’re getting fair value for their inventory.
CTV has become a powerful full-funnel channel, attracting advertisers of all sizes – and the momentum isn’t slowing.
CTV ad spend is projected to rise another 16% this year to $26.6 billion, according to the IAB. But with rapid growth comes complexity. Advertisers now face a maze of platforms, apps and channels, each with different buying models, audience access and inconsistent measurement. For SMBs without large teams or budgets, this fragmentation is especially challenging to navigate.
It has long been understood that brand is advertising’s most powerful driver of growth. Yet, in a marketplace worth more than one trillion dollars, less than 10% of digital campaigns track brand outcomes.
In today’s economic climate, every marketing dollar is under scrutiny. CMOs aren’t just required to build brands and grow demand; they’re expected to prove that their budgets drive measurable business value. And no one is more invested in that proof than the CFO.
For all of the ad tech industry’s sophistication, fragmentation remains its original sin.
The solution isn’t a mystery. Everyone agrees that greater interoperability is the answer. So what’s standing in the way?
For as long as I’ve been in marketing measurement, people have been searching for the “easy button,” the one tool, model or platform that will finally tell them which marketing dollars truly drive growth. But, after 15 years and four attribution startups, I can tell you with confidence: The easy button doesn’t exist.
You just launched a new campaign across multiple channels, from search to social. Perhaps you’ve gone out on a limb – maybe even against the recommendation of your CEO or board – and included streaming TV in the mix.
Retail media networks (RMNs) burst onto the scene as a transformative solution for lower-funnel, point-of-purchase conversions. It’s no wonder the category is surging: eMarketer projects retail media spending will top $60 billion in the US alone this year (up 20% from 2024) and reach $100 billion in the US by 2028.
