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Women's sports viewership continues its upward trajectory with the NCAA women's basketball championship game drawing over 8 million viewers and peaking at 9.8 million, per ESPN ratings. While that figure is down over 2024鈥檚 18.5 million, it represents a longer trend of sustained growth in women鈥檚 sports viewership. This phenomenon can no longer be attributed to one single star athlete鈥擟aitlin Clark鈥攂ut to an overall increase in women鈥檚 sports popularity.

Our take: Amid economic uncertainty and changing viewership habits, advertisers need to adapt to sustain audience engagement and combat ad fatigue. Micro-targeting is increasingly necessary. Mass-market approaches will continue becoming riskier, and advertiser success will depend on identifying how specific audience segments are maintaining or changing their consumption habits.

Our take: As live sports viewers and digital audio listeners continue a path of steady growth, advertisers need to tap into sports opportunities to meet audiences where they are. Advertisers can leverage sports fans鈥� high audio consumption by creating audio-focused campaigns to reach sports fans during their hours of daily listening.

HBO's hit show 鈥淭he White Lotus,鈥� is extending its off-screen influence with a series of retail partnerships. Though the show revolves around miserable rich people on vacation, it keeps viewers engaged with fashion, scenery, and unattainable luxury. Brands including Banana Republic, H&M, and Kiehl鈥檚 have seized the opportunity.

Our take: With GameBreaks, Samsung is betting that interactivity and contextually relevant games can win both viewer attention and advertiser dollars. The trivia format is low-lift for advertisers but high-engagement for users, giving Samsung a scalable way to stand out in an increasingly crowded ad-supported streaming market.

Original content still drives growth: 鈥淎dolescence鈥� proves Netflix can win with high-quality dramas that spark cultural conversation and dominate viewer engagement.

Streaming has transformed sports viewership鈥攁nd advertising along with it. With more fans tuning in through connected TV than traditional broadcast, brands now have a unique chance to reach a loyal, engaged audience.

Why CPMs are falling at Upfronts: Increased inventory and viewership is causing streamers to soften prices during the buying season.

Revenue per ad-supported viewer plunged 60% in 2024 to $34.41 as Netflix expanded its user base鈥攂ut is expected to rebound to $52.80 by 2027. That 53% recovery in per-viewer value suggests Netflix is learning how to monetize more efficiently as it scales. We expect programmatic ad spending to grow 14.6% this year to $387.2 billion.

This year, high viewership demonstrates the enduring popularity of the events, name image likeness (NIL) rights are allowing athletes to take part in brand deals, and the women鈥檚 league continues to make a bigger splash than in years past.

Streaming ad loads haven鈥檛 changed much lately. To a viewer accustomed to watching Netflix without ads, 9 minutes of ads per hour may seem like a lot. But that鈥檚 still much lower than linear TV, which has about 15 minutes of ads per hour.

Why it matters: According to our forecast, there will be nearly 56 million Hispanic digital video viewers in the US鈥攕econd only to white audiences and first in penetration. This base isn鈥檛 just sizable, it鈥檚 influential, particularly when it comes to media and culture.

Ad-supported streaming now drives most new subscriptions: Platforms are embracing ads as a primary monetization strategy, not a fallback.

Niche streaming services find foothold: Targeted platforms like Hallmark+ attract dedicated viewers amid competition from larger streamers.

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

In 2024, digital video viewership surpassed linear television. CTV advertising will grow 13% in 2025, reaching $26.6 billion and becoming 43% larger than the online video segment ($18.6 billion). CTV has achieved 鈥渕ust-buy鈥� status for 68% of marketers planning media investments, highlighting its growing importance.

Shop while you stream: Disney is beta testing its first native streaming shoppable ad format, Gateway Shop. Disney says streaming viewers will receive personalized prompts for products via mobile push notifications or email, enabling them to purchase items without disrupting the viewing experience. Unilever is one of the first brands to test the ad format.