Streaming Video CTV Ads Found Less Annoying Than Broadcast Spots

Let's get real here: People are never going to welcome interruptions to their programming, so "less annoying" is about the best an advertiser can hope for. And "less annoying" is what most viewers think of connected TV (CTV) ads as compared to broadcast spots. Telaria (the new name for Tremor Video) surveyed viewers in the U.S., U.K., France, Brazil, and Australia, and found that 54 percent overall rated streamed ads as less annoying. The amount varied by country, with France the most accepting of connected TV ads and Australia the least.

Ads on connected TV programming are effective for driving a response, the report says. Among weekly CTV viewers, over half will take action after seeing an ad, such as researching or purchasing a product. Here, Brazil got the highest marks with 60 percent and Australia the lowest at 47 percent.

Looking at the U.S., Telaria sees strong connected TV adoption and brand spending. Ad inventory is plentiful and growing, it says, thanks to large investments in new content and lots of viewers tuning in. The biggest challenge the industry faces now is raising awareness for new over-the-top (OTT) services.

The biggest player in the OTT space is Netflix, which, of course, is ad-free. But ad-supported services (AVODs) are more broadly supported than subscription services (SVODs), which are used more often by young and well-off viewers. According to the IAB, half of streaming viewers would prefer watching ads rather than spending on ad-free subscriptions.

"Advertising in on-demand content offers an exciting opportunity for marketers to reach engaged audiences because there is a high level of ad receptivity on CTV platforms," says Karen Ring, senior director of research and insights at Telaria. "Across all markets, 35 percent said they actually prefer ads on streaming services to those on linear TV, over 50 percent said ads on CTV were less annoying than on linear TV, and 30 percent pay more attention to ads in streamed programs vs linear TV. Interestingly, ad acceptance was especially high for millennials, who were more likely (32 percent) than older demos to prefer ads on CTV vs. linear TV. Given that CTV advertising is fully viewable and non-skippable, CTV offers a way to connect with consumers in an uncluttered and efficient environment."

Troy Dreier's article first appeared on OnlineVideo.net