CTV 2025 Predictions from the ElementalTV team

Can you believe it’s Week 5,136 of 2025 and it’s STILL January?

In all honesty though, Januarys in general tend to feel longer but auspicious. As the new year begins, it's not just gym memberships that see a surge - hopes and positive vibes come in at a close second

And that’s exactly what our team at ElementalTV has in store for this year. Hopes. High, high hopes for the CTV industry to somehow evolve into its best, most performance-driven, most optimized, most ‘curated’ self yet.

While the larger ad tech space is notorious for being on the higher end of the “dynamism” spectrum, (exhibit: 2024 where cookie reversals, anti-trust laws and a bazillion M&As etc took center stage) the themes predicted for CTV are more or less similar and consistent across the grapevine. 

And by grapevine, of course, I mean our rockstar ElementalTV crew that sits at the intersection of all things transformational and metamorphic in the stupendous world of CTV.

To really get a pulse on where the industry is headed, I asked some of our core team members to share their predictions for the year ahead. Their insights are as diverse as they are illuminating, so buckle up and strap in because this mini masterclass is going to be enlightening.

CRO Albert Yu: The Era of Data-Driven Curation and SPO

“The year 2025 will see a much needed “clean-up” bound to shock buyers who’ve believed in multi-billion ad opportunities, only to find out much of it was duplicative!”

Data-Driven Curation Takes Center Stage

2025 will see the rise of data-driven curation creating new and innovative opportunities for data partners with domain expertise in a given vertical as well as enabling traditional web publishers with well-known destinations to offer their perspective and opportunity into CTV retargeting as well.

Consolidation of the Supply Path

The CTV ecosystem has been plagued by duplicative ad requests, creating inefficiencies and inflating perceived inventory volumes. Albert anticipates a “clean-up” in 2025, where SPO becomes a priority. “This will shock buyers who’ve believed in multi-billion ad opportunities, only to find out much of it was duplicative,” he warns. Transparency will be the name of the game.

Publishers as Data Powerhouses

“We will see a real need for well-established publishers with well built-out sales ops to have the data capabilities and technology to deliver data-driven PMPs directly to various DSPs for the highest level of quality data resolution and the most direct supply path,” Albert adds. This will come in the form of publishers selling directly from their ad serving platforms, which will demand next-gen tools that empower publishers to merchandise their audiences effectively, creating efficient pathways for agencies and brands to connect with premium audiences.

CTO Sergey Lobko-Lobanovsky: Beyond Audience Extension - The Case for Collaboration

“The CTV adtech ecosystem must move beyond audience extension, which has become unsustainable due to privacy concerns and a lack of transparency.”

Sergey’s crystal ball reveals a future where publishers collaborate like never before. “The CTV adtech ecosystem must move beyond audience extension, which has become unsustainable due to privacy concerns and a lack of transparency,” he argues.

Instead, Sergey envisions a pivot toward modern adtech tools that facilitate secure data pooling and equitable revenue sharing. This shift will:

Create richer audience segments without the privacy pitfalls

Foster transparency and trust among stakeholders.

Align publisher and advertiser interests to prioritize value over volume.

By focusing on collaboration over competition, Sergey’s roadmap offers a sustainable way to navigate CTV’s future.

CSO Shafi Mustafa: AI, Collaboration, and Programmatic Maturity

“AI will become the cornerstone of audience engagement and monetization strategies in CTV.“

Shafi’s predictions paint a picture of an industry on the cusp of transformation:

AI-Driven Engagement and Monetization

“AI will become the cornerstone of audience engagement and monetization strategies in CTV. Publishers and advertisers will leverage AI not only for real-time audience segmentation but also to curate more personalized ad experiences based on predictive insights. This trend will drive greater ad relevance, higher CPMs, and improved viewer retention while helping advertisers reduce wasted impressions,” Shafi explains. As competition for premium audiences intensifies, AI-powered curation will be critical to unlocking new revenue opportunities.

Cross-Publisher Data Collaboration

“Fragmented viewership and siloed first-party data have been long-standing challenges,” Shafi notes. Expect accelerated adoption of clean room solutions and publisher alliances to unify data, offering advertisers comprehensive targeting options while ensuring privacy compliance.

Programmatic Monetization Evolves

Shafi predicts the rise of tiered pricing models, audience-based PMPs, and direct-to-publisher deals. “Publishers that adopt tools supporting audience unification and proprietary data activation will lead the pack,” he says.

From data-driven curation and AI-powered personalization to publisher collaboration and SPO, the trends identified by ElementalTV’s leaders highlight an industry moving toward hyper transparency, efficiency and value creation.

As Anton aptly put it, “The ability to create a seamless audience alliance will redefine how advertisers reach their audiences and how publishers optimize their inventory.” Here’s to a future where collaboration and innovation drive the CTV ecosystem to new heights.

VP Audience Solutions, Joe Hotagua: The Curation Conundrum

“The sheer number of new entrants will lead to some of the same issues we’ve seen with resellers. Without standardization, the ecosystem risks becoming a tangled web of inefficiencies.”

Joe believes 2025 will bring a surge in content curation. But there’s a catch: “The sheer number of new entrants will lead to some of the same issues we’ve seen with resellers,” he cautions. Without standardization, the ecosystem risks becoming a tangled web of inefficiencies.

To address this, Joe calls for clear guidelines on how to work with curators, ensuring a clean ecosystem where profits are shared equitably. Collaboration and transparency, it seems, will be recurring themes this year.

SVP Product & Engineering, Anton Tkachuk: Redefining Audience Connectivity with 1Audience Alliance

“Unified standards will enable seamless audience insights across fragmented ecosystems, breaking down silos that have long hindered the industry.“

Being an industry-first initiative and rivalling walled gardens, Anton outlines three transformative impacts that ElementalTV’s very own 1Audience Alliance will have on the CTV industry:

New Standards for Interoperability

Unified standards will enable seamless audience insights across fragmented ecosystems, breaking down silos that have long hindered the industry.

Granular Audience Insights

Advertisers will gain deeper visibility into audience behaviors, enhancing campaign precision.

Improved Cross-Device Attribution

As viewers increasingly jump between screens, cross-device attribution will become essential to measuring campaign success.

Anton’s vision of a “seamless audience alliance” could redefine how advertisers connect with audiences and how publishers maximize their inventory.

From data-driven curation and AI-powered personalization to publisher collaboration and SPO, the trends identified by ElementalTV’s leaders highlight an industry moving toward hyper transparency, efficiency and value creation.

As Anton aptly put it, “The ability to create a seamless audience alliance will redefine how advertisers reach their audiences and how publishers optimize their inventory.” Here’s to a future where collaboration and innovation drive the CTV ecosystem to new heights.