Fuelled by the pandemic, connected TV (CTV) viewing skyrocketed. As people spent most their time at home, they consumed an unprecedented amount of content on both big and small screens. Subscriptions to CTV platforms increased like never before. However, as we emerged from the pandemic, subscription growth slowed. This was due not only to a momentary saturation point but also to a challenging economic situation. Consequently, platforms had to devise new ways to attract subscribers and retain their existing customer base.
The emergence of FAST (Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV) and AVOD (Ad-Supported Video on Demand) channels gained popularity. In response, paid subscription-based platforms such as Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon Prime also began offering access to their content with advertising breaks at a lower price.
The advertising industry recognised this shift in content consumption. Advertising on CTV demonstrated the highest ad spend growth compared to any other media in the post-pandemic era. However, the advertising experience on CTV remained significantly subpar for clients, agencies, and viewers due to several challenges:
1. High demand but limited inventory.
2. Elevated CPMs (cost per thousand impressions).
3. Massive market fragmentation.
4. Ineffective creative optimisation, with 99% of ads being repurposed from linear TV or social videos, leading to poor consumer ad recall.
All of this leaves a huge gap to realise the full potential of CTV advertising.
At stake is the remarkable potential of CTV. Large-screen TV advertising has historically been the most powerful brand-building medium in history. Now, combined with digital audience targeting, multi-variant creative, and call-to-action capabilities, CTV can deliver a full-funnel marketing solution—a true win-win for brands, audiences, and platforms alike.
The key to unlocking this potential lies in simplifying and connecting the audience, creative, and content experiences. The Next Episode Platform will deliver this by synthesising the entire CTV ecosystem to ensure that the creative is adapted and optimised to the program and target audience. This small additional step will not only result in better viewing experience for audiences but also drive higher ROI for brands, as improved viewing experiences will lead to increased conversions.