European TV has never been an easy market for buying or selling advertising.
Much like the US TV market, national broadcasters still dominate in Europe, but their content is spread across different languages, currencies and regulations. Also much like the US, Europe is undergoing a transition from linear TV to streaming and CTV. But reliable targeting signals are harder to come by in Europe, where audiences are opted out of data sharing by default under GDPR.
RTL AdAlliance operates at the center of this challenging video and TV ad marketplace. As the international sales arm of Luxembourg-based media conglomerate RTL Group, it represents premium video inventory across Europe, partnering with broadcasters, streamers and online video publishers to aggregate supply across the region. It works alongside Smartclip, RTL’s ad tech platform, which powers the media network’s ad-serving and SSP capabilities.
Stephen Byrne, VP of Global Supply at RTL AdAlliance, leads those media partnerships, as well as Smartclip’s commercial relationships. He told AdExchanger the network is now focused on “total video,” which combines linear, CTV, streaming and premium online inventory. The goal is to package that media mix in a way that makes a fragmented European market feel more buyable to global advertisers.
AdExchanger: How does RTL AdAlliance simplify media fragmentation for advertisers and publishers?
STEPHEN BYRNE: The fragmentation is a reflection of Europe itself. Unlike the US, where advertisers can reach scale within a single market, Europe requires navigating many distinct ecosystems. That becomes especially challenging for international advertisers accustomed to more centralized buying environments.
In many cases, broadcasters grant us international exclusivity. We don’t replace their domestic sales efforts, but we help bring in demand from global advertisers who may not have the resources or expertise to operate market by market.
Because we work with major broadcasters across Europe, we’re able to aggregate that inventory into a more unified offering. The goal is to identify commonalities – whether in formats, targeting or packaging – and make the buying process feel more consistent and scalable, even across very different markets.
At the same time, we’re mindful not to flatten what makes European TV unique. National broadcasters play a strong cultural role, and local relevance is part of the value for advertisers.
How are you thinking about packaging and selling inventory today – direct vs. programmatic, curated deals, etc.?
Our ad tech arm, Smartclip, gives broadcasters and streaming services the infrastructure to manage and execute their own ad strategies. It doesn’t sell media or bundle inventory itself. RTL AdAlliance handles the national and international sales and overall aggregation.
Instead of buyers stitching together deals country by country or partner by partner, our video marketplace enables more curated, cross-market packaging, whether that’s PMP-style deals, programmatic access or more traditional I/O-based campaigns. Through this approach, advertisers can reach more than 400 million monthly viewers across Europe, providing scale comparable to that of walled gardens.
Execution-wise, the model supports both direct and programmatic buying and remains DSP-agnostic.
How real is the convergence of linear TV, CTV and online video from a supply and monetization standpoint?
Convergence is already happening, and it’s accelerating as more of the TV ecosystem becomes digitized. We’re now starting to see that play out, particularly with the evolution of programmatic TV and more advanced addressable capabilities.
From a monetization and sales standpoint, we approach this through the lens of total video. The idea is to move away from siloed buying and instead package inventory based on how audiences actually consume content.
For example, our “big screen” offering allows advertisers to buy across CTV and addressable TV in a single package, even though the underlying delivery might vary, whether it’s Hybrid Broadcast Broadband TV, Internet Protocol Television or app-based environments. The goal is to make it feel like one cohesive product, even if the tech stack behind it is quite different.
Does combining different video types produce performance gains for advertisers?
We’re already seeing strong performance indicators from total video campaigns on the big screen. In one campaign for a payment provider in Germany, 49% of exposed viewers said the brand stood out, compared with 37% among unexposed viewers. Intent to use the service was 26% higher among those who saw the campaign. These kinds of results reinforce that total video, especially on the big screen, can deliver brand impact at scale beyond what siloed channels achieve individually.
That said, the convergence isn’t yet fully uniform, especially in Europe. Each market has its own level of maturity in addressability, programmatic infrastructure and broadcaster adoption. So while the vision is clear, execution requires managing significant complexity across markets and standardizing it into something buyers can scale.
How do you balance programmatic efficiency with preserving the premium value of your video inventory?
Last year, we launched the RTL AdManager to address exactly that. It’s a curated storefront that packages premium inventory in a way that’s clear and accessible to advertisers, bridging the gap between direct I/O and programmatic buying.
For example, advertisers can access sports inventory, like World Cup packages, across multiple European markets in a single transaction, rather than navigating a complex DSP or contacting multiple broadcasters directly. While that offering is not fully programmatic yet, it streamlines buying and preserves quality.
The system is also customizable by client or agency, letting us tailor packages to different focus areas while keeping the premium, curated experience intact.
What efficiency gains do buyers get by activating premium video programmatically rather than directly?
While campaign setup times can vary significantly across markets and inventory mixes, RTL Ad Manager has reduced internal validation steps by up to 80%. It automates not just the buying process, but many of the touch points between the buy side and RTL AdAlliance.
At the same time, our video marketplace simplifies execution across Europe by enabling a single I/O at an agreed CPM and budget level, rather than requiring multiple deals with individual broadcasters.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
