Observed Signal · Dec 8, 2025 · Interview · Source: VideoWeek · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Neutral
Samsung Ads: CTV Is More Than Streaming
Samsung Ads' Matt Bryan argues that CTV should be defined as data-rich advertising beyond traditional streaming, encompassing all activity on Smart TVs. In a VideoWeek interview filmed at Roadmap in London, Bryan explains that Smart TV data captures user interactions across streaming, gaming, and linear TV on the device, enabling advertisers to run holistic campaigns that span multiple media types. The discussion touches on home screen ads and the broader connected-home ecosystem as ways to bolster CTV strategies. The piece positions Samsung Ads as advocating for an integrated, device-centric approach to cross-media planning, using first-party data and device signals to improve targeting and measurement across screens.
Industry relevance: Discusses a broader, data-driven view of CTV and cross-media planning; not a major platform update or earnings event.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Samsung Ads argues CTV is broader than streaming.
- Matt Bryan is Director of Analytics & Insights for Europe at Samsung Ads.
- Smart TVs can capture data on streaming, gaming, and linear TV activity on the device.
- Data enables holistic campaigns across multiple media types.
- Interview filmed at VideoWeek Roadmap in London.
Connected Companies & Entities
1 Entity mappedRelated Market Signals & Shifts
Recent verified developments and strategic activity across this market segment.
Samsung Ads Tackles TV Fragmentation with Data-Driven Insights
Christian Russ of Samsung Ads discusses Cannes insights on data-driven TV and fragmentation. AI, including Agentic AI, and Connected TV were prominent, with Creator Economy and YouTube on smart TVs, alongside Joyn's community-focused approach. He notes younger viewers favor streaming while linear TV remains relevant for older audiences; 74% of users start on the smart TV home screen rather than the program, a key branding touchpoint. On data strategy, Samsung Ads plans to merge device data with third-party datasets from MasterCard, Axiom, and AZ Bertelsmann to derive audience-based insights, and it is a founding member of Project Origin in the UK. Market initiatives—AGF (Germany), Médiamétrie (France), and Project Origin (UK)—seek to merge datasets, often starting with panel data and gradually incorporating device data. First-party data from Samsung devices and smartphones is central, with explicit consent, and potential for cross-device targeting and attribution.
Connected TV: The Rise of Mobile-Driven Advertising
ADZINE discusses how Connected TV is reshaping advertising through data-driven integration of TV and mobile signals, with the Homescreen becoming a premier discovery and advertising surface amid growing streaming fragmentation. The Homescreen is described as a high-reach environment where users start their TV journey roughly five times a day and spend over ten minutes browsing, enabling incremental reach and cross-screen campaigns. In Germany, H2 2024 saw 2.3 billion Samsung Smart-TV app launches, up 12% year over year. Europe-wide, 70 million Smart-TVs are linked to 20 million Samsung smartphones to bolster the Second Screen approach. Prime time (21:00–22:00) reveals elevated parallel usage of TV and mobile, with TV usage up 22% and smartphone usage up 28% vs. daily averages. The data strategy relies on explicit user consent, uses first-party data plus mobile signals, includes MMP integrations (USA), and is in beta testing, with early use cases across finance, EVs, and beauty/fashion illustrating potential for mobile-conversion-driven CTV campaigns.
Google Antitrust Ruling Spares Ad Stack, Pressures Trade Desk
A federal judge ruled that Google must open up its ad exchange and publisher ad server to more competition but stopped short of forcing a breakup of its adtech stack. The remedies include connecting AdX and DFP to Prebid, requiring equal terms for AdX bids on alternative servers, curbing self-preferencing, and sharing auction data. For The Trade Desk, which has positioned itself as the neutral alternative to Google's walled gardens, this outcome weakens its core pitch: a fairer and more transparent auction reduces the urgency for publishers to seek alternatives like OpenPath. The article also notes that Google's decision to keep third-party cookies has already slowed adoption of alternative IDs like UID2.0. Analysts suggest The Trade Desk's narrative is shifting towards CTV and agentic advertising as the open-web competition with Google evolves.
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