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We expect this trend to continue, as YouTube viewership among Gen Alpha surpassed traditional TV viewership in 2025 (62.8% versus 58.9%). Click here to view our full forecast for US YouTube viewer penetration, by age. Gen Zers spend nearly the same amount of time streaming video as they do viewing social media.

Thirty-five percent claim CTV/OTT advertising helps them capture declining audiences from traditional TV. Digital video allows for multi-platform reach while offering enhanced measurement and attribution capabilities. Platforms like programmatic CTV offer live campaign reporting with delivery and performance metrics, enabling advertisers to refine strategies when necessary.

The pivot away from traditional TV viewing continues at pace. In 2023, for the first time, less than half of 16- to 24-year-olds watched traditional TV in an average week, per Barb Audiences Ltd. data for Ofcom鈥檚 鈥淢edia Nations: UK 2024鈥� report. Where a data source doesn鈥檛 break out a Gen Z categorization specifically, we use a representative age group as an approximation.

Tech companies have an opportunity to reframe wearables into health tools for older consumers through tailored marketing messages, advertising on channels like Facebook and traditional TV, and partnerships with healthcare providers and senior organizations. Consumer device preference shifts as wearables market matures. The wearables market is consolidating as distinct device categories converge.

Digital pay TV options like YouTube TV, fuboTV, and Hulu + Live TV are still doing well, just not well enough. Digital pay TV households will grow 5.3% in 2025 (reaching 20.3 million), led by a strong 8.7% viewership increase from YouTube TV鈥攚hich is still benefiting from its heavy investment in NFL Sunday Ticket.

CTV ad spending will pass traditional TV in 2028. The CTV ad market is diffuse, with only three media companies capturing more than 10% of the ad market: YouTube, Disney, and Amazon. Part of CTV ad spending鈥檚 growth will come from RMNs, which will capture more than $10 billion in CTV outlays by 2028. Video ad spending continues to grow at a rapid pace.

The big idea: Pharma marketers should pivot away from TV advertising even if the government doesn鈥檛 implement a ban on D2C drug ads. Our take: Pharma is a unique industry that still benefits from linear TV. However, more drug brands should consider D2C online platforms that serve as quasi substitutes to TV commercials at a much lower cost, plus channels like influencer partnerships.

The news: President Trump recently signed an executive order to allow Americans to invest 401(k) retirement savings in private equity, cryptocurrency, real estate, and other alternative assets, per NBC. The administration believes this will give retirement savers more opportunities for potentially higher returns. Our take: This may excite younger consumers in particular, as they generally are more interested in alternative investments. But critics and financial experts warn that these new options come with higher risks and costs than traditional 401(k)s. The traditional banking model centers on stability, trust, and relatively conservative financial products. In addition to new opportunities, introducing high-risk, alternative assets into retirement accounts creates significant challenges for the banking sector.

Resale platform Depop launched its biggest US marketing campaign to date as it looks to expand its audience beyond its core Gen Z user base and capitalize on surging demand for secondhand goods. Growing global demand for resale presents challenges and opportunities鈥攂oth for marketplaces that trade in secondhand goods, like Depop and eBay, as well as for traditional retailers.

This is tied to cord-cutting as well as YouTube鈥檚 availability and content diversity compared with traditional TV. Click here to view our full forecast for YouTube and TV viewers. Children under 12 spend an average of 1:48 a day with YouTube, according to Giraffe Insights and Precise TV. This is followed by video-on-demand (VOD) (1:46) and broadcast TV (1:35).

YouTube accounted for 12.5% of the time spent watching TV among US audiences in May, per Nielsen, giving it the largest share of TV viewing time. This puts it squarely in competition with the likes of traditional TV networks as well as streamers, though YouTube increasingly has a leg up over both.