Advertisers are savvy and can smell empty promises from across the room, so rather than pursuing the CTV label, media partners should lean into their core strengths, writes IAB’s Jamie Finstein, who calls for the industry to stay grounded in clarity and credibility.
According to IAB’s 2025 Digital Video Ad Spend Report, US connected TV (CTV) ad spending is projected to grow by 13% to $26.6bn, making it the top-ranked “must buy” among advertisers. With digital video now expected to account for 58% of total video ad spend, the shift from linear to connected platforms is undeniable.
This rapid growth has created a predictable trend: many players now want to be seen as part of the CTV landscape. The reason is straightforward – CTV commands a higher price tag. As a result, environments that historically wouldn’t have been labeled CTV are increasingly positioning themselves that way to capture higher value.
Gaming platforms now argue that because consumers play on the biggest screen in the house, with ads served in those games, they qualify as CTV. Social platforms have announced plans to deploy apps on connected devices in order to play in this space. Retailers are increasingly partnering with streaming providers to sell CTV inventory, dangling their rich consumer data in order to secure those dollars.
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Take this tricky scenario – if you watch a video podcast on your living room TV, is that CTV? Or is it audio, because it’s a podcast? Or just online video? The lines are blurring and the industry’s rush to label everything as CTV risks diluting the value of true connected TV experiences.
IAB’s State of Data 2025 Report highlights this complexity. While advertisers are excited about premium inventory and precise targeting, measurement consistency remains a top concern. The fragmentation of CTV formats and definitions only exacerbates this issue.
CTV’s rise has triggered a wave of executive reshuffling, with platforms hiring seasoned TV and streaming veterans to bolster their credibility and capabilities.
Social and retail platforms have aggressively recruited talent from traditional TV and streaming networks to build out their CTV offerings. One major social platform hired a former broadcast executive to build the narrative that long-form video watched on a TV screen via their app qualifies as CTV. A retail giant brought in a streaming ad exec shortly after launching its own premium video ad products – only to part ways once the infrastructure was in place.
These moves reflect a broader trend – platforms are leveraging CTV expertise to shape narratives that attract bigger budgets and validate their place in the premium video conversation.
Advertisers are savvy and can smell empty promises from across the room. When publishers stretch their definitions to fit into the CTV bucket, they risk eroding trust. Buyers want transparency and results, not superficial additions to their media plans. These ventures into CTV often drive up spend commitments, tying advertisers to specific ecosystems when they could benefit more from a diversified video mix.
Advertising budgets are under pressure and, in this ever-increasingly competitive landscape, investment decisions are made with greater refinement and intent.
There’s power in authenticity. Rather than pursuing the CTV label, media partners should lean into their core strengths.
Gaming environments can offer immersive, interactive ad experiences that blend seamlessly into gameplay. Retail media provides unmatched data precision, enabling ease to point of sale by driving to commerce directly and being able to link ad exposure and purchase. Podcasts, traditionally a sound-only medium and now increasingly produced with video, deliver intimate, high-engagement storytelling through trusted voices and loyal audiences. Social platforms offer unparalleled scale and engagement and should continue to elevate those benefits versus facing the challenges of competing with CTV at less scale.
By embracing their true format, non-CTV platforms can build sustainable value, recognizing growth is strongest when consumer behavior, commerce and content converge. While that certainly includes CTV, more importantly it means meeting audiences where they are and complementing the broader media mix rather than attempting to redefine the offering.
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CTV is evolving fast and, as platforms race to rebrand and reposition, the industry must stay grounded in clarity and credibility. This means evaluating how CTV is defined and aligning on the definition as an industry. The classification of video formats across platforms continues to be a hotly debated topic – IAB will be doing the work in the coming year to help buyers and sellers alike navigate these varying definitions.
But for now, keep this in mind:
CTV is valuable, but not universal: Not every video experience qualifies and mislabeling only inflates costs and erodes trust.
Authenticity wins: Gaming, retail, audio and social each offer unique value when positioned as what they truly are rather than chasing the highest price point.
In this new era of TV, success won’t come from competing with streaming platforms; it’ll come from innovating your own format and delivering real results.
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