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Connected TV glossary – everything you need to know about CTV area

Topic: CTV, Data Exchange
  • Connected TV - most popular terms
  • What is the difference between Connected TV, Over The Top and linear TV?
  • Check high-quality CTV data and reach out to your audience

The growing popularity of Connected TV has become a reality. In 2020, more than 6 million U.S. households have “disconnected” from cable and satellite pay TV, and 80% of all U.S. homes contain at least one Connected TV device, according to eMarketer. This percentage is expected to rise to 87% by 2025. Over-The-Top (OTT) and CTV are both new experiences for consumers. For advertisers, it is a way to reach a new and unique audience. What exactly is implied by CTV-related terms?

Connected TV – most popular terms

CTV is more and more popular not only among customers but also in the digital advertising industry. According to the IAB Europe’s Report, there seems to be consensus around connected TV as a key growth area for programmatic advertising.

One of the reasons why CTV data is interesting for advertising is that it is not based on cookies and it allows advertisers to effectively target various audiences. To learn more about using CTV data and reaching out to CTV audiences, check our blog post: CTV Audience Data.

Now, let’s take a look at the most popular terms in the CTV industry. Check our small glossary below:

CTV – Connected TV – concept whereby a device that allows streaming video content is connected to (or built into) the TV. Different types of CTV devices include Xbox, PlayStation, Roku, Amazon Fire TV and Apple TV. Hybrid television (CTV) is a concept whereby a device that allows streaming video content is connected to (or embedded in) the TV.

OTT – Over-The-Top (OTT) service is the delivery of TV/video content directly from the Internet. Users do not have to subscribe to a traditional cable or satellite provider to access this content; they can watch it on a variety of devices – tablet, phone, laptop, desktop, TV, etc. Different types of OTT services include Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime. Mass media and networks are also launching their own OTT services, such as Disney+ and NBC’s Peacock.

Linear TV – Traditional system in which the viewer watches a scheduled TV program as it is broadcast on its original channel. The program can be recorded with a DVR and watched later. Linear television still has the largest market share, but its reach is limited due to increasing competition.

Addressable TV – A form of advertising that allows content to be tailored to the user. It takes into account his characteristics, demographics or habits. With addressable TV advertising, marketers can concentrate on one highly specific subset of viewers rather than try to appeal to all of them at the same time.

VOD – Video on demand. A VOD service is such a rental service, which includes various films, series and productions of the owner of a given service. Users need to pay to watch the chosen content and after paying, the content is available to watch for the specified time, e.g. 24 or 48 hours.

AVOD – Advertising-based video on demand. It is a free platform for consuming content. The only condition is that the ads appear before the desired content.

SVOD – Subscription video on demand. A platform that allows users to consume content through a paid subscription. Many streaming platforms operate on this principle but not only. The consumer can watch as much content as they want for a fixed monthly rate. With SVOD, there is much more freedom of choice, as consumers are not tied to a long-term contract.

What is the difference between Connected TV, Over The Top and linear TV?

OTT and CTV devices are two very popular methods of accessing TV/video content, but they can easily be confused with each other. On top of that, there is also linear (traditional) television. Here are some tips to help you understand the difference between hybrid television (CTV), over-the-top (OTT) service and linear television, so you can use the correct language when developing your advertising strategy.

OTT is a mechanism for delivering TV/video content online, typically via streaming or video-on-demand (VOD), in addition to the offerings of traditional network providers.

CTV is an Internet-connected device through which a customer watches TV/video content online. It can be a smart TV, a game console or any other device connected to the Internet. It can be used to stream OTT content, but the two terms are not interchangeable.

Linear TV is a classic system in which the viewer watches a scheduled TV program as it airs on its original channel. The viewer can watch the content through an antenna or by paying a cable or satellite subscription.

Check high-quality CTV data and reach out to your audience

CTV is becoming an increasingly popular form of consuming content, so it is worthwhile to explore this topic. It is worth taking an interest in creating a CTV campaign today. OnAudience has a dedicated taxonomy created for CTV. On the basis of users` activity within TV apps and devices, we create unique segments.

There are 3 key criteria distinguished in the process of creating our CTV segments:

  • Genre
  • Network
  • VOD

OnAudience team can also create CTV custom segments on client’s demand to help advertisers reach the right CTV audiences. Check our CTV Taxonomy and learn more about OnAudience data

Get the details about Audience Data

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