What advertisers want from streaming TV and how HbbTV delivers
Advertisers across Europe are demanding high-quality ad experiences, scalable reach, interactivity, data-driven targeting and measurable outcomes when investing in streaming TV, according to the new study Streaming TV Uncovered: A Marketers’ Survey by Comcast Advertising and Longterm Colab.
HbbTV-based addressable advertising meets all these criteria. HbbTV allows broadcasters to replace linear TV ads with personalised campaigns while leveraging the massive inventory of linear broadcast TV – still more than half of total viewing in many markets. The additional HbbTV-TA specification further enhances HbbTV addressable advertising support with frame accurate synchronisation between broadcast content and broadband delivered personalised ads.
Reach at scale
HbbTV reached the milestone of 100 million European households in 2025, according to Dataxis figures and is set to surpass 120 million in 2026, far exceeding any single connected TV platform. Its unified framework works across all TV brands, offering advertisers a single, consistent inventory instead of fragmented platforms.
High-quality ad experiences
HbbTV delivers full-screen, lean-back ad environments with predictable playback and brand-safe placement, driving attention and stronger brand impact compared with app-based streaming.
Interactive and engaging formats
HbbTV pioneered interactive TV at scale with red-button campaigns in the early 2010s. Today, overlays, microsites, and shoppable features remain native, consistent, and standards-based across devices.
Advanced targeting and analytics
HbbTV based addressable advertising can-TA leverages broadcaster first-party and contextual data (with consent) for precise targeting and supports real-time measurement and optimisation, closing the traditional gap between TV delivery and performance.
Flexible inventory and programmatic integration
From linear to Broadcaster VOD and FAST Channels, HbbTV provides unified, programmatic-ready inventory, giving advertisers reach, control, and accountability in a single workflow.
In short: HbbTV combines premium ad environments, massive reach, interactivity, targeting, and measurement – aligning streaming TV investment with advertisers’ objectives across Europe.
The full study can be downloaded here: Streaming TV Uncovered: A Marketers’ Survey (PDF)
Jörn KriegerFreelance Journalist
