The news: Connected TV (CTV) ad spending is growing as Roku continues to dominate.

• Global open programmatic CTV ad spend reached approximately $6.2 billion in Q1 2026, up 24% YoY, per Pixalate’s Q1 2026 CTV Ad Supply Chain Trends report.
• Roku led share of voice (SOV) in North America and Latin America, with 36% and 42% share, respectively.

However, ad fraud is rising as well.

• Pixalate determined that one-quarter of global programmatic CTV traffic was invalid, up from 18% in Q1 2025.
• The highest rate of invalid traffic (IVT) was in Asia-Pacific at 58%, and the lowest was in North America at 24%.
• Amazon Fire TV had the lowest rate of IVT among CTV platforms at 15%, followed by Roku at 16%. LG’s rate was the highest at 40%, with Samsung not far behind at 36%.

What it means: The programmatic CTV market is expanding quickly, but this growth is inseparable from concerns around inventory quality and platform control.

Roku and Amazon are cementing their positions through audience reach and lower fraud rates, which could become a competitive differentiator. That dynamic could accelerate a “walled garden” shift in streaming advertising, where buyers prioritize trusted ecosystems over an open market.

Meanwhile, smaller publishers may struggle as brands demand tighter controls on measurements.

Recommendations for marketers: Treat mitigation of fraud and transparency in supply paths as core criteria for media buying. The rise of IVT necessitates focused spending on platforms and marketplaces that have strong verification standards and direct relationships with publishers.

Marketers should prepare for a more condensed CTV landscape: Walled garden environments give major platforms more control over pricing and audience data, which could limit negotiating power. Diverse media partnerships will be important.

Finally, marketers should invest in independent verification tools and scrutinize regional traffic quality to see which geographies need increased oversight.

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