Consumers spend most of their daily digital time with mobile devices—and ad spending reflects that. But as viewers shift to ad-supported tiers and streamers add inventory, connected TV (CTV) is closing in.
US adults spend 2 hours and 15 minutes (2:15) per day with CTV, an 8.3% increase YoY. But CTV is under indexing when it comes to advertiser spend, primarily due to a shortage of inventory and because what is available is expensive, said our analyst Yoram Wurmser. That will change, both as streamers such as Netflix and Disney+ increase their ad inventory and free ad supported TV (FAST) channels such as Tubi and Pluto TV gain popularity.
In 2024, CTV will only account for $0.13 of the US digital ad spend per hour spent with digital per adult, compared with mobile, which accounts for $0.51, according to our “Time Spent With Connected Devices 2024 report.
The bottom line: Audiences are diffuse, said Wurmser, and it’s important to concentrate less on the device and more on your target consumer.
“It’s not the most earth-shattering insight, but follow your audience,” he said. “Focus on how your audience is consuming content. Odds are it's still going to be on a mobile or CTV device, but you might realize that your audience may skew toward desktop or something else.”
Other factors advertisers should consider when budgeting their digital dollars include:
Digital audio: US adults spend 1:24 per day with digital audio, but the channel has the lowest annual ad spend per user of any medium, $36.05, according to our forecast. Those hours spent listening on phones and in cars represent an opportunity for advertisers. “That’s well below digital video, which is over $500 per user. It severely under-indexes,” Wurmser said.
Apps: Over 90% of time spent on mobile devices is in-app, and consumers typically use about 20 apps, according to our forecast. The key to in-app advertising is figuring out which apps your target audience lives in. “There’s a reason that mobile attracts so much attention and as much money as it does. Figure out where your audience is and concentrate your dollars there,” said Wurmser. “That’s going to be your biggest bang for the buck."
Tablets: After peaking this year at 54 minutes, tablet use by US adults will slip in 2025, according to our forecast. Although that’s only a quarter of the time spent with mobile phones (3:06), advertisers shouldn’t disregard that device, said Wurmser.
Untapped channels: For advertisers looking to expand their reach into new devices, such as automotive consoles, the advertising ecosystem surrounding these channels is underdeveloped, said Wurmser. “There’s active work to make these [channels] more programmatic and usable for advertisers, but it's still early days. But advertisers should keep an eye on developments there and get their feet wet.”
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