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Whether it’s making headlines for its commanding role in the political advertising sphere, its record-setting viewership levels, or its popularity among younger generations, it’s no secret that connected TV (CTV) is one of the most talked about—and fastest-growing—advertising channels.
However, rapid channel growth is often accompanied by increased risks, and CTV is no exception. Factors like its fragmented nature and lack of standardization make it vulnerable to fraud, from inflated ad impressions to wasted spending on inactive devices. At the same time, advertisers face the possibility of their ads being placed next to low-quality content or content that conflicts with their brand values, which can erode audience trust. Fortunately, there are solutions to address these risks, which allow teams to harness the full potential of this booming channel in a way that protects against ad fraud and brand safety threats.
The TV landscape has undergone a dramatic transformation in recent years, as connected TV and over-the-top (OTT) have exploded in popularity and traditional linear TV viewership has declined. Over the past five years, time spent with CTV has increased by more than 137%, and time spent with traditional/linear TV has decreased by nearly 17%. Even more, in June 2024, streaming amassed the highest share of TV usage—a whopping 40.3%—surpassing the previous record set by cable in June 2021.
However, the fast-paced influx of CTV ad dollars has attracted attention from fraudsters and other bad actors, making ad fraud a growing threat on the channel. This is of particular concern when it comes to programmatic CTV: In Q3 2023, 15% of programmatic CTV advertising traffic was found to be invalid.
At the same time, more than 80% of CTV ad buyers feel significantly concerned about securing brand suitable ad placements. Because the landscape is so fragmented—with viewers watching across a variety of apps and platforms on their connected devices—it’s more difficult for advertisers to control precisely what content and/or programming their ads run alongside. As a result, teams that overlook a brand safety plan when investing in the channel could very well end up with fraudulent placements and/or ads served next to content that is unsuitable for their brand or client.
Part of the reason ad fraud in the CTV landscape is increasing is because advertisers are spending more programmatic dollars on the channel. While CTV makes up a relatively small fraction of the overall programmatic market, more than 2 in every 5 new programmatic dollars spent are going to the channel. Without proper safeguards, programmatic inventory becomes more vulnerable to fraud, driven by reduced ad verification, increased traffic volume, and a fragmented supply chain.
Bot fraud, which artificially boosts the number of video ad impressions, is one of the most common types of ad fraud in the CTV open marketplace. DoubleVerify and Roku recently identified “CycloneBot,” a highly sophisticated fraud scheme that not only spoofs impressions but also simulates prolonged CTV viewing sessions, making the invalid impressions more difficult to detect. The bot can spoof 1.5 million devices, equating to 250 million invalid ad requests every single day. Fortunately, thanks to Roku’s Advertising Watermark and DoubleVerify’s verification process, the bot was detected. Moving forward, Roku is looking adapt their watermark into an industry standard to better combat such fraud schemes.
Beyond these fraud risks, CTV’s rapid rise in popularity has also led to significant brand safety challenges. Without safeguards in place, advertisers’ CTV ads could end up running alongside low-quality or unsuitable content—or, in more extreme cases, harmful or misleading misinformation or disinformation.
Take, for instance, YouTube’s dominating presence in the connected TV space. In early 2024, Nielsen announced YouTube was the top streaming platform by time spent watching by viewers for an entire year, with viewers across the globe watching more than 1 billion hours of YouTube content on their connected TVs each day. But platforms like YouTube pose a substantial brand safety risk, given that they are filled with user-generated content (UGC). While ads on the channel might run alongside more traditional tv programming that viewers are accessing via streaming on their CTV, they could also very well appear next to UGC that may or may not be a brand suitable environment.
Made-for-advertising (MFA) CTV apps pose an additional brand safety challenge. Much like MFA websites, MFA CTV apps often employ aggressive tactics that create a low-quality experience for viewers. And like ad fraud, this problem is more common in the open marketplace, with an estimated $144 million in programmatic ad spending going to such low-quality CTV apps each year.
Overall, while CTV was once seen as a brand safety haven, its rapid growth and evolution now require advertising teams to carefully consider brand safety when investing in the channel.
Another brand safety concern advertisers must navigate in the CTV space is its meteoric popularity among political advertisers.
Traditional linear TV has long been a go-to for political advertisers, and it’s no surprise that political CTV advertising has exploded as viewers have shifted to streaming. In fact, in 2024, 45% of all digital political ad spending is forecast to go to CTV. For some teams, serving ads alongside political content might be viewed as a boon, as this content often draws a lot of attention. On the other hand, political content and ads can be negative and divisive, making adjacent ad placements unsuitable for some teams. And with the explosion of generative AI, coupled with many tech behemoths making significant cuts to their trust and safety teams, the prevalence of political mis- and disinformation is growing all the more rampant in digital spaces. This adds an additional layer of consideration for advertisers looking to make the most of CTV in 2024.
As advertisers consider their CTV brand safety plans, it’s critical to think through the implications of advertising alongside political content, particularly during high-impact time periods like the weeks leading up to Election Day.
Amidst this complexity, how can advertisers meaningfully prioritize brand safety on connected TV? Though this is still an area that is evolving and developing, there are steps advertisers can take now to maximize the CTV opportunity while protecting against fraud as well as brand safety and suitability concerns.
First, teams can take advantage of high quality, premium inventory offered through programmatic guaranteed and private marketplace deals. “When it comes to these types of deals, the brand safety plan is essentially built into the deal itself,” says Kali Baldino, VP of Media Investment at Basis Technologies. “When you’re working with the provider to build these premium deals, you’re indicating what types of content you want to run on—and what types you want to avoid—from the start.” These options offer a higher level of control and quality assurance compared to open marketplaces, reducing the risk of ad fraud. They also offer enhanced control over where ads are placed, allowing advertisers to ensure their ads are appearing in brand suitable placements.
Additionally, when bidding on the open marketplace, advertisers can use tools like allowlists, blocklists, or CTV-specific contextual targeting segments to focus their ads on desired placements. “We’ve seen a lot of success by focusing on the types of content teams do want their CTV ads to appear alongside and building a brand safety strategy around that,” says Baldino. “However, I’d advise against getting too specific, as that can limit a campaign’s reach.” By using these tools intentionally, teams can achieve a balance between brand safety and campaign reach, maximizing the impact of their campaigns while mitigating potential risks.
In addition, advertisers can ensure fraud prevention, brand safety, and brand suitability on CTV by working with partners to help monitor and validate ad placements to ensure they meet teams’ brand safety standards and reduce the risk of fraud both pre- and post-bid. For instance, partners like Peer39 can help protect brand safety through contextual targeting solutions that ensure ads are placed in suitable environments; Comscore provides audience measurement and analytics to help verify ads and ensure they are being shown to legitimate viewers on CTV platforms; and DoubleVerify offers solutions to verify ad placements, prevent fraud, and measure viewability, as well as to ensure ads are not placed alongside inappropriate or unsafe content. Just how effective are these types of brand safety and ad fraud verification? One study found that advertisers not using verification experienced an 11.2% fraud rate, compared to a rate of 0.6% for those who did use verification to protect their CTV campaigns.
Finally, when it comes to navigating political content, there are several steps that teams can take to ensure their CTV ads are not running alongside unsuitable political content and/or misinformation or disinformation. First, during times when political content is most prevalent (i.e., the weeks leading up to Election Day or primaries in battleground states), advertisers can up their spend on platforms where political content is not allowed, such as Netflix and Disney+, and may choose to suspend their ad spend on platforms that tend to see more divisive political content, such as X. Additionally, they can use blocklists or allowlists to eliminate placements known to be associated with political content and/or misinformation. Even more, contextual targeting can help teams to place ads only within content categories that are relevant and appropriate, thus minimizing (though, admittedly, not completely eliminating) the chances they appear next to controversial or undesirable political content.
By approaching CTV campaigns intentionally and with a strong brand safety plan in mind, teams can navigate the complexities the channel poses and avoid potential brand safety and fraud risks.
Connected TV advertising offers significant opportunities to advertisers, but it isn’t without its drawbacks. Amidst its soaring popularity in recent years, ad fraud and brand safety concerns have become more pronounced on the channel, making it more critical that advertising teams craft intentional and proactive plans to ensure suitable ad placements that inspire trust and foster connection with target audiences.
By seeking to understand the ad fraud and brand safety challenges in the space, crafting a CTV brand safety plan, and working with partners to avoid fraud and ensure ads meet brand safety standards, advertisers can make the most of the CTV opportunity while protecting themselves from the rising threats of ad fraud and brand safety risks.
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Want to learn more about connected TV advertising, especially within the context of a more holistic digital video approach? Check out our guide, Video Unleashed: The Ultimate Guide to Digital Video Advertising.