COMPANIES ARE SPENDING HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS ON MARKETING, BUT THE RETURN ON INVESTMENT IS FALLING

26. 6. 2026 Marketing costs are rising, competition from both local and low-cost Asian rivals is becoming increasingly fierce, and maintaining a healthy profit margin is a challenge. Online shops that base their decisions on data are the most successful in this regard. Advertising may be more expensive, but those who best understand how their customers make decisions are still able to grow healthily today.

APPLE SPENDS THE MOST, BUT OTHERS ARE GRABBING THE LIMELIGHT. WHAT DETERMINES A VIEWER’S VALUE?

31. 5. 2026 The highest investment in content does not automatically translate into the greatest audience attention. At the same time, streaming platforms are beginning to shift their perspective on their most valuable customers. Viewers who watch adverts and spend more time engaging with content are becoming increasingly valuable.

THE TV ADVERTISING PARADOX, A THINKTV NEW ZEALAND CASE STUDY (2/2)

22. 5. 2026 The strategic response: the TV advertising paradox.

TV NOW AND NEXT: A FIXED POINT AMID THE TRANSFORMATION OF MEDIA

27. 4. 2026 The world of video viewing has undergone a significant transformation over the past decade. New platforms have emerged, viewing habits have changed, and the options for how and where content can be consumed have expanded. Yet despite this dynamism, it is becoming clear that Total TV, which includes traditional broadcasting and streaming services, remains a dominant and stable element of the media landscape.

THE TV ADVERTISING PARADOX, A THINKTV NEW ZEALAND CASE STUDY (1/2)

24. 4. 2026 In late 2024, ThinkTV New Zealand, under the leadership of Jacqueline Freeman, GM Communications, undertook a full market review to understand how television was being perceived, valued, and used across the New Zealand marketing ecosystem. This was a broad diagnostic rather than a simple pulse check. It drew on perspectives from CMOs, CFOs, insights people, media agencies, creatives, and people working at the front line within television itself. The objective was not to validate assumptions already sitting in the market. It was to uncover what had changed, where belief had shifted, and why.

OMNICONNECT: WITHOUT THE RIGHT METRICS, YOU CAN’T MANAGE MARKETING TODAY

30. 3. 2026 This year’s OmniConnect conference demonstrated that well-defined metrics are key to marketing management, brand growth and return on investment. Alongside global insights, local case studies were also presented, confirming the growing role of data, AI and attention management in modern communication.

ATTENTION IS NOT THE GOAL; IT IS A BRIDGE TO CAMPAIGN EFFECTIVENESS

30. 3. 2026 Advertising needs to return to a focus on effectiveness rather than chasing cheap impressions and clicks. Attention can play a key role as a bridge between reach and results. However, using it effectively lies in planning, not optimisation. This was highlighted by Malcolm Devoy of PHD at the OmniConnect conference.

STUDY: EUROPE REMAINS LOYAL TO TELEVISION, WITH VIDEO VIEWING DOMINATED BY THE BIG SCREEN IN THE LIVING ROOM

30. 3. 2026 RTL AdAlliance has published the fifth edition of its annual Living Room Study, which this year covers an even broader audience, thanks to newly added markets such as China and Hungary. The study clearly shows that television continues to play a key role in Europe even in the age of streaming services — it remains the main place for watching video, the centre of the shared viewing experience, and the natural home of local content.

AI TRENDS IN ADVERTISING, MARKETING AND THE MEDIA IN 2026

22. 3. 2026 Artificial intelligence is transforming the way people discover brands, marketing is becoming system-driven, and creativity is emerging as the key driver of growth, according to a new report by EACA and Advertising Week entitled “AI Forecasts & Predictions for 2026”.

THINKBOX: TOTAL TV IS FUNDAMENTAL FOR GETTING ADS SEEN

12. 3. 2026 The time people spend watching different video content is useful to know. But the most important analysis for advertisers is the time spent watching the advertising.

STUDY: WOMEN’S SPORTS OUTPERFORM PRIME TIME TV

10. 3. 2026 Third annual EDO report finds that women’s sports ads drove 15% more impact than the average primetime spot, led by financial service, insurance, and restaurant brands.

MUSIC IS THE GATEWAY TO EMOTIONS AND INCREASES MARKETING EFFECTIVENESS – BUT BRANDS OFTEN UNDERESTIMATE ITS POWER, SAYS THE STUDY SOUND SCIENCE

3. 3. 2026 Sometimes, adverts get under our skin. And then, even hours after watching them, we find ourselves humming a catchy melody or jingle that got stuck in our heads. Yet in planning advertising campaigns, music is often an “afterthought”. This was one of the reasons for the creation of the study Sound Science: How Music Is the Missing Link in Marketing ROI.

STUDY: ADVERTISERS BOOSTING SPENDING ON CONNECTED TV, NEW STUDY FINDS

2. 3. 2026 Premion, Advertiser Perceptions respondents see best results when linear TV and CTV are coordinated.

THE VISUAL TRANSFER EFFECT: HOW SOUND BUILDS BRANDS

24. 2. 2026 In collaboration with neuro-marketing agency Unravel, Talpa Media has produced the scientific proof that audio does not just complement TV. It actively reactivates it, reconstructing visual brand memories in the consumer’s mind through sound. The findings carry significant implications for how audio is planned, sold, and valued within the wider media mix. Context Talpa Media is one of the Netherlands’ largest media companies, operating a broad portfolio of TV, radio, and digital platforms. That multiplatform reach puts them at the centre of a question: what actually happens in the brain when consumers encounter TV and audio advertising together? Specifically, Talpa aimed to explore whether prior exposure to a TV commercial changes how the brain processes a matching audio ad, and whether that effect can be measured without relying on conscious recall. Research Forty participants were fitted with EEG caps to capture real-time brain activity and exposed to commercial breaks from 14 brands. The study used a two-group design:

WHEN A CROSS-FORMAT APPROACH MULTIPLIES IMPACT: BOL × HUIS GEMAAKT ACROSS CONTENT & CONTEXT

23. 2. 2026 Description Bol is Belgium’s largest e-commerce platform, a household name for buying books, electronics, and everyday items online. But furniture and home décor? That was not what consumers associated with the brand. DPG Media set out to change this perception through a multi-format partnership with Huis Gemaakt (“Home Made”), a popular Flemish TV show where couples compete to renovate run-down properties, with the winning couple keeping their fully transformed home.

TURNING ONE TRAVEL OFFER INTO TWO TV STORIES FOR TWO TYPES OF FAMILIES

22. 2. 2026 Attraction Tickets sells Florida attraction tickets and theme-park hotel packages to UK customers. It has served more than five million customers since 2002 and offers access to destinations including Walt Disney World Resort, Universal Orlando Resort, SeaWorld and Disneyland Paris. In a competitive travel market, people compare options quickly, and marketing is judged by its ability to turn interest into bookings.

VAB STUDY: SOCIAL MEDIA HAS NO CHANCE OF HELPING SMALL BRANDS BREAK THROUGH WITHOUT ADVERTISING ON STREAMING TV

17. 2. 2026 Today’s VAB webinar showed that while social media is popular among advertisers, it is far from a silver bullet. It’s true that it is easy to buy, easy to measure, and allows for quick testing. But there is one major problem: new research shows that its effect on new brands is limited and absolutely insufficient for breakthrough success. However, when streaming TV is added as an additional channel alongside social media, brands achieve significantly greater attention, better recall, and higher purchase intent.

WHAT GIVES A SUPER BOWL AD SHELF LIFE IN 2026

10. 2. 2026 For decades, the price tag to advertise during the Super Bowl has been justified by access to a centralized audience. As attention disperses across platforms and star power extends to creators, marketers are rethinking how Super Bowl investments translate into consumer recall.