TV ad measurement is breaking down. Tatari’s Benjamin Heaton explains why signal loss and privacy shifts are reshaping how TV campaigns, and how it can be fixed.
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.
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.
Television advertising has undergone a remarkable transformation in recent years, with connected TV (CTV) emerging as a powerful channel for marketers seeking the impact of traditional television with the precision of digital targeting.
In the next two years, linear TV will be deprioritized so much that holding companies will begin outsourcing their linear buying.
In the age of streaming services, it’s easy to overlook the enduring power of linear TV. But even though platforms like Netflix and Hulu have captured a significant portion of the market, traditional television still reaches a massive and valuable audience.
A significant amount of the ad inventory distributed to CTV audiences is actually sold via linear. This is especially prevalent with FAST networks, which currently account for 20%-25% of ad-supported streaming.
Smokeless fire pit brand Breeo is ready to make TV an even bigger piece of its marketing strategy after trying Tatari’s new TV planning tool. Breeo was one of a handful of clients that beta tested the product before Tatari formally announced it on Wednesday. It was made generally available earlier this month.
The advertising industry’s shift from last-click attribution to multi-touch attribution (MTA) initially promised a deeper understanding of marketing effectiveness. However, limitations like signal loss and the ineffectiveness of non-clickable media like TV have emerged.
As April 15 marks the deadline for filing personal taxes in the US, it’s crucial to bring attention to a less acknowledged but equally significant tax in the CTV landscape. Unlike the annual tax day, the ad tech tax is a perpetual drain on advertisers’ budgets, diminishing their return on investment with every campaign run through the programmatic CTV pipes.
