Viewing is spreading across broadcast TV, streaming apps and online video, on phones as well as televisions. OTT and connected TV advertising let brands follow that viewing with targeted, measurable video. Here's how they work.
OTT, CTV and linear TV
- Linear TV is scheduled broadcast or cable television. Ads are bought by channel, programme and time slot.
- OTT ("over the top") is video delivered over the internet: streaming apps and online video platforms, watched on any screen.
- Connected TV (CTV) is OTT watched on a television, through a smart TV, streaming stick, games console or set-top box.
All CTV is OTT, but not all OTT is CTV. The distinction matters because a CTV ad plays on the biggest screen in the house, usually with the sound on, while OTT on a phone behaves more like mobile video.
How OTT ads are bought
There are two routes:
- Direct: booking with a streaming platform or publisher, similar to buying TV sponsorships or fixed packages.
- Programmatic: buying OTT and CTV impressions through a demand-side platform, often through private marketplace or guaranteed deals with the publishers. This lets you combine inventory from several platforms and manage frequency across them.
Large platforms such as YouTube also sell their own video inventory, including ads that run on TV screens, through their own tools.
Targeting
Unlike linear TV, OTT can be targeted by audience rather than programme alone:
- Age, gender and interests
- City or region
- Device type, such as TV screens only
- Content genre or specific apps
- Time of day and day of week
Formats
- Pre-roll, mid-roll and post-roll: video ads before, during or after content
- Non-skippable and skippable: common on TV screens and on mobile respectively
- Interactive and shoppable units: available on some platforms, letting viewers respond with a remote or a QR code
Measurement
The core measures are impressions, reach, frequency and video completion rate. Because OTT is delivered digitally, you can see these by platform, device and audience, which is hard to do with linear TV. Where tracking permits, brands also measure site visits, searches or conversions from exposed viewers, and brand-lift studies can show changes in awareness or consideration.
Creative for the big screen
- Design for sound on and a large screen; captions are still useful on mobile
- Show the brand in the opening seconds
- 15 and 30 seconds are the most widely accepted lengths
- Check each platform's specs for resolution, file size and safe areas
- A QR code can give TV viewers a way to act without reaching for a search bar
Planning OTT with TV and social
OTT fits between linear TV and social video. It can extend a TV campaign to people who watch little broadcast TV, or give a digital-first brand a big-screen presence without the cost of a TV buy. Social video then delivers frequency on mobile. Planning the three together helps each do a clear job and avoids paying twice to reach the same people.
Before you start
Decide whether you are buying reach or completed views, set a frequency cap, confirm which platforms and screens are in the plan, and agree the measures before launch. Our OTT and connected TV advertising service covers planning, buying and reporting, or you can send us a brief.