A series of major milestones are on tap for total media and digital media ad spending around the world in 2025, although growth will be uneven across countries and regions.

Don’t count Roku out: The CTV provider hit 90 million US households, cementing its leadership even as the sector undergoes major consolidation.

Comcast’s streaming ad platform aims for SMBs: Universal Ads will launch with partners like Roku and WBD as competition for SMBs increases.

Video ad spending continues to outpace overall digital ad spending and will power the fastest-growing ad-supported media.

Roku wants to open the CTV door for small and midsize brands: A partnership will allow brands to repurpose ads designed for social media to run on its platform.

The connected TV ad opportunity is growing significantly in scope. The promise of broad yet targeted reach, retail media tie-ins, campaign measurement, and ad interactivity are fueling strong spending growth.

CTV inventory has surged, but the linear TV ad market remains much larger.

Walmart’s advertising business gets a boost: The retailer closed its Vizio acquisition, giving it inroads into the lucrative CTV market.

Roku’s original content gives it an edge in CTV: A deal with Google highlights how content offerings allow Roku to reach viewers outside its hardware net.

Google and Meta landed slightly below expectations in Q3, allowing a collection of hungry competitors to inch ahead. But overall, the ad industry remains healthy. Sports events drove streaming and CTV to record gains, and retail media continues to be the sector’s fastest-growing ad channel.

Streaming services are leaning more on advertising than they used to, resulting in increased overall ad spending but lower ad prices.

Roku Q3 results emphasize ad-supported growth: Increased streaming hours and accounts offer advertisers valuable inventory.

The 14th annual Global Media Intelligence Report details time spent with media, adoption of emerging formats, and device ownership in key markets around the world.

The traditional TV bundle will further decay as more live sports embrace streaming.

The retail media landscape is evolving rapidly, requiring brands, networks, and tech partners to optimize and enhance their ad solutions and capabilities. Here are three recent announcements.

Just Eat Takeaway expands retail media offerings with Rokt partnership: The delivery company joins DoorDash, Instacart, and Gopuff in enhancing its ad capabilities

CTV isn’t exempt from privacy regulation: While regulatory efforts are uncertain, advertisers should begin adopting privacy-oriented CTV solutions.

The number of companies generating more than $1 billion in annual US CTV ad sales more than doubled from two in 2020 to five in 2024. With ad dollars spreading out among services, a few streaming platforms stand out because of their heavy usage.

Paramount expands shoppable TV capabilities with Shopsense AI partnership: The two companies team up to enable viewers to shop the MTV VMAs, with plans to install similar features in other Paramount content in the coming months.

The Trade Desk is developing a CTV operating system: Its ambitions could trigger a new age in CTV advertising and potentially upend the balance of power.