TV Ad Clutter 12-8-25

US TV ad clutter in 2025 is characterized by audience fragmentation, leading to ad fatigue and a fight for attention, but also a resurgence in TV investment (especially CTV/streaming) by major brands, with retail and CPG (Consumer Packaged Goods) leading spend, though economic uncertainty (tariffs) pressures overall budgets, while AI and data are crucial for managing this complex, evolving landscape for better targeting and ROI.  

Key Themes in 2025 TV Ad Clutter:

Fragmentation & Fatigue: Viewers are spread across many platforms (Linear, CTV, Digital), causing audience fragmentation, which intensifies competition and leads to consumer ad fatigue, with intrusive ads performing poorly.

CTV Growth: Connected TV (CTV) is a major focus, with significant increases in ad spend and marketers seeing it as key for reaching audiences, despite cross-platform visibility being a challenge.

Resurgent TV Investment: Despite digital growth, major advertisers (68% of top 100) increased TV investment in H1 2025 to build share-of-voice, focusing on both linear and CTV.

Economic Headwinds: Economic shifts and potential tariffs create budget volatility, impacting overall ad growth and making marketers prioritize flexibility and performance.

Industry Focus: Retail (19%) and Consumer Packaged Goods (15.3%) are the largest spenders on TV advertising in 2025, with telecom showing strong digital growth. 

Addressing the Clutter:

Data & AI: Advertisers use advanced data and AI to create more targeted, efficient, and impactful campaigns across platforms.

Strategic Investment: Brands are balancing digital and traditional TV, leveraging CTV's reach while managing costs, with major media mergers influencing strategy.

Performance Focus: Investment leans towards performance-driven channels and automation to navigate the complex media environment effectively. 

Reports & Data Sources (Examples):

Samba TV: H1 2025 report on TV ad impressions and advertiser trends.

eMarketer: Forecasts for US ad spending by industry (retail, CPG) and platform (CTV).

MNTN Research: Analysis on increased CTV spend by marketers.

Deloitte: Digital Media Trends survey covering ad-supported SVOD. 

While a single, universally titled "US TV ad clutter report 2025" might not exist, several industry reports from 2025 highlight key trends regarding ad frequency and consumer sentiment across traditional and connected TV (CTV). 

The general consensus from 2025 data suggests that the fragmentation of the media landscape is driving advertisers toward more targeted, and often more frequent, ad placements, which some industry professionals argue is increasing the sense of clutter. 

Key Findings from 2025 Reports

Ad-Supported Dominance: More than 70% of all TV viewing in Q1 2025 occurred on ad-supported platforms. This shift means consumers are increasingly exposed to ads even outside of traditional linear TV, which some research indicates is now just as crowded as old-school TV in terms of ad load.

Advertiser Strategies:

Doubling Down: In the first half of 2025, 68% of the top 100 advertisers actually increased their TV ad investment to gain a greater "share-of-voice" in the competitive landscape.

Smarter Targeting: Advertisers are leveraging new technologies in CTV to target specific households and demographics with more effective campaigns, often using non-skippable formats.

Focus on Creative: The increasing clutter has led to a greater emphasis on creative and engaging ads, as "bad advertising" is what consumers tend to hate, not necessarily all advertising.

Consumer Perception: Consumer opinion is a mixed bag. While some reports note that product placements can make content seem more authentic, others indicate a persistent percentage (20-25%) of consumers actively hate ads and try to avoid them. The general feeling is that intrusive and repetitive digital ads rate poorly with consumers.

Linear TV Decline: Linear TV advertising is expected to decline in 2025 due to ongoing audience migration to streaming services, with general entertainment and lifestyle networks being the most affected.

Specific Reports to Note:

Samba TV's "H1 2025 US State of Advertising Report" provides detailed data on 1.7 trillion ad impressions, highlighting which brands are increasing or decreasing their spend.

S&P Global Ratings' "U.S. Advertising Forecast Remains Robust" discusses the divergence of ad trends between digital and legacy platforms, forecasting a significant decline in national TV advertising for 2025. 

In short, the industry is more focused on the effectiveness and placement of ads within a fragmented market rather than a single metric for "clutter," adapting to the reality that viewers are controlling their experience more than ever. 

https://www.google.com/search?q=us+tv+ad+clutter+report+2025

Comments

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Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader