The Transformative Impact of Generative AI on CTV Advertising
Connected TVs (CTVs) have emerged as an exciting medium for consumers and advertisers alike. For viewers, this content medium has given them the freedom to choose what they want to watch and when. For advertisers, it has created an opportunity to reach a growing audience and measure outcomes more accurately than they could on linear TV. The adoption of this medium is continuing to gain momentum as more viewers move towards adopting CTVs for content consumption and in turn, we see a greater percentage of ad budgets being allocated for CTVs worldwide.
The transformation of advertising on television through CTV has largely been possible due to the AI-based tools that have been at the core of programmatic advertising. Thanks to its advanced targeting and measurement capabilities, programmatic advertising – driven by AI tools – has made CTV advertising appealing for brands of all sizes.
Unlocking the power of Generative AI in CTV advertising
The integration of Generative AI (GenAI) into CTV advertising has ushered in a new era of possibilities, beyond what was possible with other traditional AI algorithms. Because GenAI is based on large language models (LLMs), it can create new content in the form of text, images and videos, based on the patterns it learns from the underlying training data. The increased value creation that GenAI offers through this can open up new possibilities for advertisers on CTV.
By harnessing the capabilities of GenAI, advertising platforms can make sense of unstructured language based information to enable much more powerful contextual targeting. By analyzing, not only contextual factors such as streaming program content and viewer location, but full transcripts of shows, for example, Gen AI can deliver ads that are highly relevant and tailored to individual preferences, thereby enhancing engagement and driving results. This is particularly interesting for brands who want to advertise within specific content and for specific audiences. GenAI can also do a great job enabling advertising platforms to automatically discard certain types of content without requiring pre-defined categorization, for example, not showing ads on entertainment content intended for kids or shows that a brand considers too violent.
Beyond targeting capabilities, GenAI’s biggest contribution to CTV advertising may be its ability to personalize creatives. Reducing hours of manual work, GenAI can help brands quickly create multiple versions of an ad and contextualize each version for different audiences, geos, weathers and seasons, as well as the other characteristics of the household it is shown to! This level of personalization will not only improve the ad relevance but also make it easier for advertisers to get more value.
The need for Generative AI in the era of measurement
With digital advertising mediums, there has been a shift towards measurable, outcome-driven advertising. Advertisers have been using data-driven insights with programmatic advertising to optimize their campaign efficiency and reach the right customers. Today, data-driven tools also allow advertisers to leverage data from multiple sources and deliver holistic advertising towards integrating customer journeys across mediums. GenAI holds the potential to further analyze and optimize ad campaigns in real-time. Currently, a large dependency for data analytics is on campaign managers. But interpreting large data is an area where one can expect GenAI to provide more value and efficiency in the process, allowing campaign managers to focus on providing value to the campaign rather than just reporting.
Looking to the future of CTV’s growth
The content consumption landscape continues to evolve and one can expect CTV to rise further with the surge in OTT adoption globally. As viewers move to CTV for better content experience and opt out of cable subscriptions, more advertisers are eager to invest into CTV advertising. With the potential of GenAI to disrupt this space, advertisers will be in a better position to transform the way ads are distributed and displayed on CTVs, easily creating innovative and personalized experiences for viewers.
Of course, as with any new technology, we’ll need time to see its full transformative potential and we are in for a period of continued learning, innovation, and exploration of GenAI’s impact on advertising in general. As GenAI evolves at a rapid pace over the next few years, along with changes in the digital advertising landscape, we will have the privilege to witness a master blend of AI creativity and human innovation in this space.
About the author:
Noelia Amoedo, CEO, mediasmart (Affle)