With both Christmas and New Year’s falling right in the middle of the week this year, let’s be honest with ourselves: For all intents and purposes, 2024 is already over.
Which means now is a fine time to see how far CTV advertising has come by looking back at some of this year’s most-read stories on AdExchanger.
(And for more in-depth analysis about how things have changed over the past 12 months, be sure to read Senior Editor Alyssa Boyle’s recap of this year’s biggest CTV trends.)
Without further ado, let’s get into it.
1. How Streamers Are Fighting The Plight Of Shrinking TV Ad Inventory (March)
Not only do TV audiences generally dislike watching ads, but thanks to streaming services like Netflix, which didn’t introduce advertising until the end of 2022, they’ve become accustomed to entertainment experiences that don’t include commercial breaks.
If you buy into the prediction that US television could lose up to a quarter of its ad volume by 2027, this poses a pretty serious existential threat to the future of TV advertising – one that’s forcing publishers with streaming services to get creative with how they increase their ad loads, as Alyssa explained earlier this year.
So far, it seems to be paying off. During their third–quarter earnings calls, most publishers said that both their ad-supported streaming tiers and FAST channels were seeing tremendous growth if not outright profitability.
2. The Debate Over Premium Content Is Holding Back Programmatic CTV Growth (May)
“Premium content” is like beauty in that it exists in the eye of the beholder – and it’s also capable of starting wars.
Granted, the ongoing battle between publishers and agencies over programmatic CTV buying probably won’t be the subject of any epic Greek poems or Brad Pitt movies. (Although, you never know. Corporate biopics are big right now!)
Still, programmatic adoption has continued to increase exponentially in the CTV landscape, whether publishers are ready to relinquish control over their “premium content” or not.
3. Is Owning Content Actually A Conflict For DSPs? (November)
Speaking of content, in late November, The Trade Desk finally announced – well, admitted, really – it plans to release its own TV operating system called Ventura in the second half of 2025.
Getting into the OS game is hard at this stage, especially without having any control over the actual television hardware. Perhaps that’s why The Trade Desk framed its move as a way to create a more even playing field with other DSPs that own their own libraries of content – which, in TTD CEO Jeff Green’s view, represents a conflict of interest.
It’s certainly an argument to be made, although everyone I asked about it seems unconvinced.
And so TTD’s Ventura is unlikely to kick off a trend of new OS copycats, at least not until its efforts prove successful. Still, the tension between owning content and content delivery systems is probably worth keeping an eye on in the future.
Make new friends, but keep the old
That’s a wrap on 2024! Stay tuned for our predictions about what’s coming down the pike for CTV advertising in 2025, and enjoy your holiday.
Questions? Comments? Concerns? Hit me up at victoria@adexchanger.com.
