Advanced TV & Digital
CTV (Connected TV)
Televisions connected to the internet via internal smart capabilities or external devices (e.g., Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire Stick).
What is CTV (Connected TV)?
CTV refers to any television that accesses content through an internet connection rather than traditional broadcast, cable, or satellite. That includes smart TVs from Samsung, LG, and Sony; streaming devices like Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, and Chromecast; and game consoles such as PlayStation and Xbox when used for video streaming. The common thread is IP-delivered video on the largest screen in the household.
CTV advertising combines the reach and brand lift of traditional television with the targeting precision of digital — household-level IP targeting, frequency capping across devices, closed-loop attribution via ACR data. That combination is why CTV is the fastest-growing format in advertising, consistently outpacing linear TV in year-over-year ad-spend growth since 2020.
Why it matters
CTV allows for highly precise, digital-style audience targeting on the largest screen in the household, completely revolutionizing linear TV buying strategies.
Related terms
- OTT (Over-the-Top)— Video or audio content delivered directly over the public internet, entirely bypassing traditional cable, satellite, or terrestrial RF distribution systems.
- Addressable TV— Technology allowing advertisers to display completely different commercials to different households simultaneously while they watch the exact same linear program.
- Frequency Capping— A technological limit placed on how many times a specific user IP or device ID can be served the exact same digital ad within a timeframe.
- ACR (Automatic Content Recognition)— Technology embedded within Smart TVs that visually or acoustically scans what is playing to identify the exact content or commercials.