The news: Approximately 17% of all ads delivered through connected TV (CTV) devices like dongles or gaming consoles are playing while televisions are off, costing marketers $1 billion per year in wasted ad spend, according to a report from GroupM and iSpot. GroupM and iSpot said they found “virtually no incidence” of the issue when users were streaming from native smart TV apps.

Gaming and esports are bright spots: Video gaming ad spend more than doubled from January to April, according to MediaRadar. The launch of several new subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) services during the pandemic like NBCUniversal’s Peacock, HBO Max, and Quibi—as well as the launch of Disney+ last November—all contributed significantly to digital ad spending.

US adults are spending more time watching YouTube on connected TVs and less time watching it on mobile devices. This year, for the first time since we began our forecast, less than half of time spent with YouTube will be on mobile, as viewers pivot to watching these videos on the same screen as their TV programming, separate from their TikToks and Instagram Reels.

Our definition of entertainment encompasses amusement and recreation, box office, film, music, OTT video platforms, and video games (excluding video game hardware). While we view them as discrete industries, there is overlap between them. For example, most major media companies have news and entertainment divisions.

Our latest forecasts for ad spending in Canada, which include our first-ever estimates for Google and Meta, show strong growth overall and an accelerated shift to digital.

The predominance of mobile in the entertainment advertising mix is not surprising given that activities like video streaming, gaming, and social video happen mostly on mobile devices.

Much of this content is streamed live and then has a considerable shelf life on these platforms afterward, which can garner additional ad dollars. We expect US gaming video content ad revenues will surpass $1.56 billion this year, up 18% year over year. What Are the Opportunities for Marketers?

Whereas our digital video estimate is device agnostic, our CTV estimate is limited to digital advertising that appears on TV screens, which includes internet-enabled smart TVs as well as TVs that connect through external devices, like Roku sticks and video game consoles.

Subscription revenues in apps—including gaming, dating, OTT video, and fitness apps—will reach $18.62 billion this year, a 16.2% YoY increase. They’ll account for 44.0% of total IAPs. Gaming apps make most of their money via IAPs of virtual goods. The IAPs of virtual goods in gaming apps will total $18.83 billion this year, while IAPs of subscriptions will generate only $784.4 million.

But now, with a majority of apps showing the tracking pop-up, just under half of users have opted in. 46% of users across all app categories consented to tracking, far above initial estimates that anywhere from 2% to 20% would opt-in. 80% of all iOS apps have implemented the tracking pop-up, with gaming apps leading at 91%. The sooner users are prompted, the better.

Pandemic Causes Media and Entertainment Digital Ad Spending to Decline Despite Uptick in Streaming and Gaming. 3 Key Trends Shaping the Media Landscape This Year​.

Pandemic Causes Media and Entertainment Digital Ad Spending to Decline Despite Uptick in Streaming and Gaming. eMarketer and Business Insider Intelligence have joined forces to become the leading research company focused on digital transformation. For more insights and key statistics on the biggest trends in today's most disruptive industries, subscribe to Chart of the Day.