When you have led teams of buyers and sellers, you’ve heard a good pitch or two. Nothing was more heralded than the dawn of CTV—pegged as the attractive solution for advertisers grappling with the end of linear TV’s supreme reign.
Countless publishers promised the perfect marriage of deep audience engagement at scale, attracted by premium video content with precision targeting and data to support performance.
On paper, it sounded dreamy—but then a viewer would pick up a remote (or two!) only to encounter endless options for where and what to watch, challenging discoverability, and practically no ads or ones that felt easy to ignore or repeated endlessly.
This wasn’t innovation. The technology and the marketplace infrastructure were not ready to deliver, and they still aren’t today.
It has become increasingly clear where CTV falls short—and more importantly, where advertisers need to pivot to truly capture attention and drive performance in today’s video marketplace.
The new path to engagement
The reality is that audiences are becoming harder to engage, and their attention is more fleeting than ever. At the same time, while CTV offers a wealth of content, its effectiveness as a channel for brand performance can be questioned, challenged by evolving viewer behavior and content trends.
While linear TV’s decline has coincided with the growth of ad-free and ad-supported streaming, viewers are often multitasking (a staggering 64% of viewers report using secondary devices while streaming, according to Nielsen), dividing their attention across devices or ignoring ads altogether. As a result, advertisers are missing out on opportunities to meaningfully connect with their target demographics.
This shift in viewing behavior is vividly reflected in recent data from just last year: While streaming accounted for 41% of total viewing time, it represented only 15% of total ad time. This discrepancy highlights a deeper issue—the growing difficulty brands face in breaking through the noise to reach consumers in an oversaturated, screen-dominated world.
So, where does this leave advertisers? While it’s certainly time to rethink traditional CTV strategies, smart marketers are treating this as a catalyst to explore new pathways to audience engagement. Three major areas of growth have emerged as critical opportunities for advertisers who are looking to be ahead of the curve:
Video that captures attention: With a projected U.S. ad spend of $33 billion in 2025, and an impressive 18% year-over-year growth, video remains a cornerstone of impactful brand strategy. But in the current environment of shorter attention spans, not all premium video is created equal—so quality content matters.
Retail media’s precision play: Retail media networks are challenging the rules of performance marketing. Targeting and retargeting capabilities make retail media an attractive and increasingly valuable channel, with U.S. ad spend expected to reach $72 billion this year, reflecting a 20%year-over-year growth.
The creator economy’s expanding horizon: The creator economy has emerged as a mainstream force in marketing, and creators are beginning to move beyond social platforms, into new distribution channels—including, unexpectedly, movie theaters. With a forecasted U.S. ad spend of $9 billion in 2025 with 14% year-over-year growth, this channel offers a dynamic and authentic avenue for brands to innovatively connect with audiences.
Rethinking the power of the big screen
In consumers’ increasingly screen-centered lives, the channel that stands out for its ability to deliver on brand awareness and performance is cinema.
Cinema advertising has evolved into a high-performance channel, with qualities reflecting—and often surpassing—CTV. The in-theater experience is inherently immersive, offering advertisers an unrivaled experience with large-format visuals, surround sound, and an engaged audience.
Unlike streaming viewers who are mindlessly scrolling or skipping ads, theater audiences are captivated by the storytelling on screen, creating a rare moment of undivided attention that brands can authentically tap into.
Consider this: Only 24% of consumers watch digital ads with the sound on. In contrast, cinema delivers a distraction-free experience in a unique environment, one where audiences are fully present and engaged, free from the distractions and second screens commonly found at home.
And with such a captivated audience comes impressive data sets and technology that allow advertisers to take advantage of the 41% of movie goers who go shopping after they leave the theater.
Attention is the new currency
In a media landscape that is oversaturated with content and options, attention is quickly becoming the most valuable asset in advertising. Channels that best command attention—in authentic, meaningful ways—will define the next era of brand building.
As CTV’s limited impact becomes more apparent, cinema emerges not as an alternative, but rather as a strategic option for advertisers who want to lead in the video marketplace, not follow.
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Catherine Sullivan is president at NCM.
