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‘Adapt, and fast’: NewFronts tout CTV innovation amid upfront uncertainty

A streaming remote flying through a dark cloudy sky and guiding itself with a spotlight.

Illustration by Robyn Phelps / Shutterstock / The Current

Major TV networks and streamers will pitch to advertisers this week during upfronts, where a shift to more agile digital channels could take on greater significance amid potential economic headwinds.

That urgency was evident last week at the NewFronts, where leaders across media and tech looked to turn uncertainty into opportunity. As IAB CEO David Cohen said onstage on Wednesday: “Uncertainty has become a feature, not a bug.”

Themes like smart TV evolution, free ad-supported streaming TV, audience reach and measurement and AI took center stage. NewFronts highlighted the areas where emerging tech and digital innovation converge to create value for advertisers.

In her keynote speech, Cintia Gabilan, SVP of the centers of excellence and industry initiatives at IAB, outlined three factors that are supercharging rapid changes in the media industry:

  • Video is evolving, leading to an emphasis on performance-driven advertising.
  • AI is no longer a supporting player in advertising.
  • Economic uncertainty amid President Donald Trump’s tariffs could impact even ad tech infrastructure.

“Who survives this moment will come down to who can adapt, and fast,” Gabilan said.

CTV takes center stage

IAB projects that digital video will capture 58% of total TV and video ad spend this year, with connected TV (CTV) being a big part of the shift. Gabilan said that a surge in ad spend has narrowed the gap with social video.

What’s driving that momentum?

“Live sports and live events drove engagement across streaming platforms, and publishers came to the table with better tech stack, better measurement and more premium inventory in their upfront offerings,” Gabilan explained.

CTV’s growth was on full display during NewFronts week, as TV and streaming players — from Samsung to Tubi — showed off new ad offerings. And it’s apparent that the burgeoning CTV landscape has given way to more opportunities for free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) platforms and channels.

“As streaming technology evolves, interactive capabilities are no longer experimental —they’re becoming foundational,” says Rob Aksman, chief strategy officer and president at BrightLine. “CTV, particularly FAST and streaming platforms, offer more room for innovation than linear ever could, and that opens the door to smarter, more personalized brand experiences.”

Tubi announced pause ad formats and more, as well as new partnerships to strengthen identity and performance, and Samsung introduced the Samsung Television Network, a FAST channel on Samsung TV Plus.

Legacy media companies are also adapting. A+E Networks, now A+E Global Media, rebranded earlier this year to spotlight its digital ecosystem, which includes its branded streaming platforms like Lifetime Movie Club, a relaunched History.com and, you guessed it, a suite of FAST channels.

CTV platform Future Today, home to FAST channels like Fawesome and HappyKids, announced a suite of interactive ad formats. The company also announced a partnership with Chuck E. Cheese to launch its own media network, including branded FAST channels that will be shown on its thousands of screens at its venues.

“As nascent as a lot of people think this [FAST and advertising video-on-demand] industry is, it’s matured very quickly,” says Vikrant Mathur, co-founder of Future Today. “The industry is starting to look a lot like the traditional linear TV industry, from a standpoint of distribution. The likes of Roku and Samsung are the next generation of TV service providers because they have access to the consumer.”

AI adopters will gain an upper hand

Of course, it’s hard to talk about evolution in CTV without mentioning the rise of AI.

“AI is quietly becoming the backbone of everything, from content discovery to dynamic ad targeting,” Aksman says.

Though, there is still plenty of room for more adoption in the ad industry.

Seventy percent of brands, agencies and publishers are not yet fully integrating AI into media plans, activation and analysis, Gabilan said, citing IAB research. However, half of those expect to be fully AI-powered by 2026.

“The gap between AI adopters and AI skeptics is about to become a competitive fault line,” she said. “So the issue isn’t whether AI will change video, it’s about who is ready for it or who will fall behind.”