🛍 CTV Accounts for More Than Half of Premium Video Ad Views

According to the latest Video Monetisation Report by FreeWheel (a Comcast company), CTV accounted for 53% of all premium video ad views in the region during the first half of 2026. CTV’s share of European ad inventory has doubled since 2023, reflecting a rapid shift toward streaming and the ongoing convergence of linear broadcasting with digital formats.

Overall, total premium video ad views in Europe surged by 20% year-over-year—outpacing the US market, which saw a 12% increase. Industry experts attribute this strong momentum to broadcasters aggressively combining linear and digital inventory, alongside the continued expansion of AVoD and BVoD platforms.

Growth Drivers: Programmatic Buying and Live TV

• Expansion of Programmatic Buying: Programmatic execution in European CTV grew by 9% year-over-year. The number of unique advertisers leveraging automated buying across the US and Europe rose by 25%, signaling that premium video inventory is becoming increasingly accessible to mid-sized businesses alongside major brands. France emerged as one of the most dynamic markets, recording a 46% year-over-year jump in programmatic CTV ad views, which now account for nearly half of its total premium video volume.
• Resurgence of Live Broadcasting: H1 2026 saw a notable shift toward live streaming, with the share of ad views during live content rising to 32%, up from 25% in H2 2025. This boost was largely propelled by a crowded sports calendar and high co-viewing rates, with live content continuing to deliver top-tier engagement and completion rates.
• Targeted Advertising and Data Enrichment: Data-driven targeted ad views increased by 11% in Europe and 5% in the US. Over half of all bid requests now include enriched contextual attributes; for instance, the “Genre” field is present in 57% of requests.
• High-Quality Attention: Completion rates across pre-roll, mid-roll, and post-roll formats exceeded 90% on the top three CTV device types. This underscores the premium environment’s strong audience retention power, even as ad delivery chains become increasingly automated.

Emmanuel Josserand, Senior Director of Brand and Agency Relations at Comcast Advertising, emphasized that programmatic access to CTV is lowering entry barriers for advertisers of all sizes. However, he cautioned that European broadcasters must accelerate the evolution of their streaming and programmatic strategies to remain competitive in a media landscape increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence.