Connected TV Advertising Market Size & Share Analysis - Growth Trends and Forecast (2026 - 2031)

Global Connected TV Advertising Market Trends and Insights

Streaming Audience Migration from Linear Television

Audience movement away from linear television remains the most basic force behind the connected TV advertising market. Viewers are spending more time in streaming environments, and that is changing where advertisers look for household reach and repeated exposure. This shift matters because connected TV combines the living room screen with digital delivery, which makes campaign control stronger than in traditional television buying. The result is a market where brand budgets are following audience behavior rather than waiting for old viewing patterns to return. That audience migration also strengthens the long-term case for the connected TV advertising market because inventory growth and buyer demand are moving in the same direction.

Expansion of Ad-Supported Streaming and FAST Inventory

The expansion of ad-supported services and FAST channels is increasing the amount of sellable inventory across the connected TV advertising market. Gracenote reported that active FAST channels in key markets reached more than 1,610 as of March 2025, and the total nearly doubled from mid-2023, with channel count rising 21% during 2025.^{[1]Gracenote, “2025 FAST Report,” Gracenote, gracenote.com} That growth gives advertisers more access to broad-reach viewing environments that sit outside traditional subscription video models. It also gives publishers more room to test new ad loads, packaging models, and audience groupings without depending on a single type of streaming service. Wurl stated that FAST ad revenues are projected to exceed USD 12 billion by 2027, which shows why the connected TV advertising market continues to attract more demand from buyers looking for scalable video inventory.

Programmatic Buying and Automated Yield Optimization

Programmatic execution is becoming a core operating layer for the connected TV advertising market rather than an optional buying method. Premion reported that 50% of CTV and OTT advertising is expected to be purchased programmatically in 2026, while 34.6% of CTV ad dollars are now moving through real-time bidding channels, up from 9.5% in 2019.^{[2]Premion, “New Survey, More Than 70% of CTV Advertisers Will Increase Spending by an Average of 17% in 2026,” Premion, premion.com} This change helps buyers move faster, compare supply more easily, and connect campaigns to larger pools of authenticated inventory. It also rewards publishers and platform owners that can support premium private deals, cleaner audience signals, and more stable delivery standards. The Trade Desk’s February 2026 Ventura Ecosystem launch showed that infrastructure partnerships are now part of the competitive logic of the connected TV advertising market, especially where device operating systems and streaming platforms want more control over monetization flows.

Live Sports and Premium Event Monetization

Live sports and other premium event programming are becoming more important to the connected TV advertising market because they deliver large audiences in real time and support premium pricing. These formats are especially valuable because they combine appointment viewing with strong brand safety and low skip behavior. The commercial focus is shifting from simple rights ownership to the ability to package live inventory in ways that work across programmatic and direct channels. Gracenote and PubMatic said in June 2026 that their partnership would allow programmatic CTV inventory to be discovered and transacted using episode-level and live sports metadata in real time, which shows how premium live content is becoming easier to monetize at scale.^{[3]Gracenote and PubMatic, “Gracenote and PubMatic Bring Curated Live Sports and Content-Level Deals to Programmatic CTV,” PR Newswire, prnewswire.com} As more premium events are sold with better data and clearer content signals, the connected TV advertising market is likely to see stronger buyer interest in high-value video placements.

Measurement Fragmentation Across Walled Gardens

Measurement fragmentation remains one of the clearest limits on faster spending growth in the connected TV advertising market. Buyers still face different reporting methods, identity frameworks, and attribution rules across major streaming platforms, which makes cross-platform comparison difficult. This matters because budget migration depends on a clear link between campaign spend and business outcomes, especially when brands are moving money from long-established television plans. IAB responded to this problem in 2025 with guidance that called for standardized Conversion API adoption for connected TV, which shows that the market still needs common measurement practices to improve advertiser confidence. Until those standards are used more widely, the connected TV advertising market will continue to face friction when large brand budgets are reviewed against more measurable digital channels.

Limited Show-Level Transparency and Content Visibility

Limited show-level transparency also slows spending decisions in the connected TV advertising market because advertisers often know the audience they want without seeing enough detail on the exact program context. That gap weakens planning confidence for buyers who want to match brand messages with relevant content environments rather than rely only on audience segments. It also reduces the ability of publishers to prove the added value of premium programming in automated auctions. The June 2026 Gracenote and PubMatic partnership directly addressed this problem by linking inventory packaging to content-level metadata and live sports attributes in programmatic transactions. If show-level visibility improves, the connected TV advertising market should be better placed to attract larger contextual and brand-led campaign commitments.

*Our forecasts treat driver/restraint impacts as directional, not additive. The impact forecasts reflect baseline growth, mix effects, and variable interactions.

Segment Analysis

By Ad Placement: Mid-Roll Anchors Revenue While Pre-Roll Builds Momentum

Mid-roll ads held 45.49% of the connected TV advertising market size in 2025, which kept this format in the leading revenue position. The segment benefits from being placed inside the viewing session rather than at the start or the end, which makes it more central to monetization for premium streaming services. In the connected TV advertising market, mid-roll inventory also fits well with longer-form content where platforms can manage ad load without changing the basic viewing experience. That makes it useful for both premium subscription services with ad tiers and FAST services that depend more heavily on advertising revenue. The segment’s current lead suggests that platforms still prefer formats that can be inserted naturally into established content breaks.

Pre-roll ads are projected to grow at a 10.81% CAGR through 2031, which shows that buyers still value formats that are simple to deploy and easy to scale across varied content types. Pre-roll placement works well for advertisers entering the connected TV advertising market from digital video and display campaigns because it aligns with familiar buying logic and broad reach goals. Post-roll ads remain part of the placement mix, though they are more often used to extend message exposure than to carry the core burden of campaign delivery. The IAB Tech Lab’s CTV Ad Portfolio, published in December 2025, also widened the placement discussion by standardizing 6 new formats for programmatic trade, including pause ads, menu ads, screensaver ads, in-scene ads, squeezebacks, and overlays. That standardization gives the connected TV advertising market more ways to package attention beyond the traditional pre-roll, mid-roll, and post-roll structure.

By Ad Format: Video Dominates Inventory While Interactive Ads Reshape Performance Expectations

Video ads accounted for 78.83% of the connected TV advertising market size in 2025, which shows that the format still defines how advertisers use the television screen in streaming environments. Full-screen video remains the most direct way to deliver reach, recall, and brand messaging on connected television devices. Its lead also reflects the fact that most premium streaming inventory is built around video delivery rather than static or companion formats. In the connected TV advertising industry, this keeps video at the center of pricing, inventory planning, and campaign design. The segment’s position is unlikely to weaken quickly because video continues to match both advertiser expectations and platform economics.

Interactive ads are forecast to expand at an 11.12% CAGR through 2031, which signals that performance-led use cases are becoming more important across the connected TV advertising market. The move toward interactivity reflects demand for formats that can connect viewing with shopping, search, or response actions in a more direct way. Display ads still matter in the connected TV advertising market, especially on home screens and pause surfaces where platforms can create new inventory outside standard video pods. The IAB Tech Lab’s 2025 portfolio supports this shift by making more nontraditional CTV formats easier to transact programmatically across demand and supply platforms. As these formats become easier to buy and measure, the connected TV advertising industry is likely to support a broader mix of branding and conversion-led campaigns on the same screen.

By Device Type: Smart TVs Extend Their Lead While Streaming Media Players Accelerate

Smart TVs represented 59.65% of the connected TV advertising market size in 2025, which confirmed their role as the primary access point for streaming content in the home. Their lead comes from direct integration between the television, the operating system, and the content environment where ads are served. This gives smart TV owners a stronger position in data collection, inventory control, and home screen monetization. In the connected TV advertising market, that combination makes smart TVs more than just hardware because they shape how viewers discover content and how advertisers reach households. Gaming consoles remain a secondary device category, but they still offer value where advertisers want younger and highly engaged audiences.

Streaming media players are projected to grow at a 10.45% CAGR through 2031, which points to continued demand for dedicated streaming operating systems and device ecosystems. Roku’s scale and its role in household-level distribution remain important signals for the connected TV advertising market, especially after Fox announced its plan to acquire Roku in June 2026. Device-level platform control is becoming more valuable because it affects ad serving, data access, and the route through which demand partners can activate campaigns. The Ventura Ecosystem also showed that operating system owners and streaming infrastructure partners are trying to build stronger monetization frameworks around device reach. This means the connected TV advertising market is increasingly influenced by which companies control the screen entry point rather than only the content being watched.

By End User: Entertainment Holds Ground While Retail Commerce Redraws the Competitive Map

Media and entertainment held 29.34% of the connected TV advertising market share in 2025, which kept it as the largest end-user segment. This position reflects a natural fit between entertainment brands and streaming-first audiences that already spend significant time in connected viewing environments. These advertisers also tend to understand release timing, audience targeting, and promotional pacing more deeply than many other categories because they operate inside the same media system. In the connected TV advertising market, that allows entertainment companies to use the channel for launch support, audience extension, and cross-platform promotion. The segment therefore retains a durable role even as newer advertiser groups increase their spending.

Retail and e-commerce is forecast to grow at an 11.25% CAGR through 2031, which makes it the fastest-growing end-user segment in the connected TV advertising market. The shift is tied to a broader move toward shoppable media, retail data activation, and campaigns that link awareness with direct response. This is changing the way the connected TV advertising industry is used because brands no longer treat the television screen only as an upper-funnel branding tool. Automotive, healthcare, financial services, and travel also remain active in the connected TV advertising market because they can target households at moments that align with major purchase decisions. As retail-led activation grows, the connected TV advertising market is likely to carry a more balanced mix of brand-building and conversion-oriented campaign goals.

Geography Analysis

North America held 38.42% of the connected TV advertising market size in 2025, which kept the region in the leading position. The region benefits from mature programmatic systems, broad streaming inventory, and high household use of connected television devices. It also remains the most developed market for packaging premium content with data-led audience buying. In the connected TV advertising market, this gives North America a strong advantage in monetization depth and transaction efficiency. Fox’s announced acquisition of Roku in June 2026 showed how valuable platform control has become in this region because it combines content, operating system reach, and ad infrastructure in one proposed structure.

Asia-Pacific is forecast to grow at a 10.64% CAGR through 2031, making it the fastest-growing region in the connected TV advertising market. Growth is being supported by rising smart TV adoption, broader broadband availability, and a less entrenched linear television structure in several countries. Japan stands out within the connected TV advertising market because CyberAgent reported that the country’s CTV video advertising market grew 127% year over year in 2025 to JPY 129.5 billion, (USD 869 million). The region is not moving at the same speed in every country, but the direction is clear and the base of connected viewing households is widening. That makes Asia-Pacific an important growth engine for the connected TV advertising market over the forecast period.

Europe is becoming more important to the connected TV advertising market as digital video gains a larger place in regional advertising budgets. IAB Europe reported that European digital ad spend reached EUR 131.1 billion (USD 147.8 billion), and video accounted for more than half of all display investment in 2025. This matters because connected television is part of the wider video expansion taking place across the region. Data use and consent rules also remain important in Europe, which gives first-party data management and clean-room partnerships a larger strategic role. In the Middle East, IAB MENA reported that CTV advertising grew 31% in 2025, ahead of overall digital market growth of 17.8%, which shows that connected viewing is gaining weight beyond the largest established regions. Africa remains a longer-term opportunity for the connected TV advertising market as broadband coverage improves and streaming adoption becomes more widespread across younger populations.