Programmatic TV

Programmatic TV is an umbrella term used to describe the technology-driven approach to regular linear TV advertising, where advertisers can plan, buy, measure, and optimise TV ad campaigns via automated, data-driven methods using a demand-side platform (DSP) as a tool or software.

Programmatic TV brings the qualities of digital advertising to TV advertising, enabling advertisers to operate programmatic campaigns via digital ad-serving platforms. Using automated, data-driven processes available on these platforms, advertisers can serve relevant, timely ads across multiple channels and then measure and optimise these ads. 

The technologies and data capabilities involved in Programmatic TV have allowed TV advertising to move beyond the relatively inflexible methods of manual buying traditionally offered for TV campaigns. Advertisers running Programmatic TV campaigns — either via digital TV ads served online (to connected TVs, mobile devices, or PCs) or via linear or on-demand ads served to set-top boxes — can now be more flexible with their TV ad buying as they can make last-minute changes and adjust their campaigns to suit their needs, which was not possible with traditional advertising. This decreases wastage and increases the efficiency of TV campaigns.

Programmatic TV ads are served into the traditional TV ad break based on forecasts of who is likely to be watching and are shown to the whole audience watching that TV show at that moment. This contrasts with Addressable TV, which — using the technologies and data capabilities of Programmatic TV — serves individual ads targeted to individual users, on a one-to-one device-level basis, based on real-time data on who is actually watching.