Talking Shop May 2025

Creators, Content and Connected TV: IAB NewFronts 2025

IAB NewFronts, the world’s largest digital content marketplace, took place in May in NYC, setting the scene for what’s next in digital advertising. Key takeaways were:

– Digital video surpasses linear TV in US, now accounting for 52% of the video ad market. Connected TV (CTV), social platforms, and online video are becoming primary channels for advertisers to reach modern audiences.

– AI is transforming advertising, with major players like Meta and Google showcasing AI-powered tools that streamline creative production, optimise ad placements, and enhance audience targeting, claiming to make advertising more personalised and efficient.

– Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV (FAST) channels are on the rise as they become a go-to option for cost-conscious consumers. Platforms like Samsung TV Plus and LG Ads are expanding their offerings, appealing to advertisers looking to reach broader audiences without subscription barriers.

– Content creators lead brand engagement, with brands increasingly partnering with creators who offer authentic storytelling and loyal audiences. Influencer marketing continues to prove its value, with creators acting as trusted voices that bridge the gap between brands and consumers in more organic, engaging ways.

– Inclusive storytelling is non-negotiable as more platforms invest in content that reflects multicultural and underrepresented communities. Inclusive storytelling isn’t just good ethics – it’s good business, resonating deeply with today’s audiences.

TV market grows as broadcasters adapt

In 2024, UK television advertising experienced a 3.8% year-on-year increase, reaching £5.27 billion, marking its first growth since 2021. Broadcaster TV, encompassing linear and on-demand services, accounted for £5 billion (96%) of this total, reflecting just 1% growth. Meanwhile, ad-supported streaming platforms – SVOD, AVOD, and FAST – contributed a much smaller £236m, but a much more significant 146% growth rate from 2023.

Meanwhile, ITV has announced significant cuts to the budgets of its biggest daytime shows including Good Morning Britain, Lorraine, Loose Women and This Morning, including halving the number of production jobs and significantly reducing the time some programmes are on air.

Lorraine will be cut from an hour to 30 minutes in length and air for just 30 weeks a year rather than 52. Loose Women will stay at the same running time but will be also be cut to 30 weeks. ITV says the savings will allow investment in high-profile shows, such as Mr Bates vs The Post Office, and events such as the football World Cup.

STV, seeking to diversify beyond linear TV, has revealed it will launch a new Scotland-focused commercial radio station. The mainstream music station will be on digital radio and online, and aimed at the 35-54 year old market. The station name, presenters and launch date are still to be revealed. STV see this as a natural extension of their brand into the audio market, and intend for it to be a top-three commercial station in Scotland by 2030.

Streaming giants unlock ad potential

As subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) platforms continue to capture growing audiences, they’re rapidly transforming both their content offerings and advertising capabilities, creating dynamic new opportunities for brands to engage with viewers.

Amazon’s Prime Video has announced the introduction of contextual AI-generated pause ads, which align ad content with the scene on screen – for example, inserting holiday ads during beach scenes. It’s a powerful blend of storytelling and targeting that keeps ads relevant and immersive. The platform has also unveiled an enhanced suite of interactive ad formats, including shoppable units powered by real-time Amazon shopping signals like pricing, deals, and product reviews, seamlessly bridging brand awareness and purchase intent.

For brands that don’t sell directly on Amazon, new interactive call-to-action (CTA) formats have been introduced. These include lead generation tools such as “Get a Quote,” “Book an Appointment,” and “Subscribe Now” buttons, allowing viewers to send details straight to their phones and take immediate action.

Meanwhile, Netflix is also expanding its advertising footprint, announcing the launch of its in-house Ads Suite in Europe this June. The platform offers more advanced targeting options, including the integration of first-party data via LiveRamp, and enabling access to third-party data through partners like Experian and Acxiom, all supported by a privacy-centric clean room approach. It’s a major step in offering advertisers both scale and improved targeting.

With over 20 million UK households now subscribed to at least one SVOD service, the landscape is shifting fast, and marketers have a powerful window to connect with engaged, on-demand audiences.

Commercial radio reaches 40m UK adults a week

Radio continues to thrive in the UK with the latest RAJAR data (Q1 2025) showing that it reaches 50.1m listeners per week (87% of adults), up 0.4% from the same period last year.

Commercial radio reaches 39.8m UK adults each week, accounting for just under 55% of total listening, up from 54% a year earlier and just 0.1% below its record high. Listening on digital platforms dominates, capturing 73% of all radio listening hours, of which DAB accounts for 42%.

With regards to environment, 62% of listening happens at home, 26% in a vehicle and 12% at work or elsewhere. This significant change since 2019, when 44% of listening took place at home, has been driven by changes to working patterns post-COVID, and the growth of smart speakers which now account for a record 18% of all radio listening.

Heart celebrated having overtaken BBC Radio 2 to become the ‘UK’s most listened-to radio brand’. The BBC protested that this was based on listenership to the main Heart Network combined with other Heart-branded spin off stations. When comparing the main stations, BBC Radio 2 still wins at 13.1m vs Heart Network at 10.2m. BBC Radio 2’s breakfast slot, presented by Scott Mills since Zoe Ball’s departure in January, saw a dip of 5% to 6.5 million listeners.

Elsewhere, talkSPORT hit a record 3.9 million listeners, while Times Radio continued its climb with 622,000 weekly listeners. GB News Radio also grew its audience by 19% to 559,000.

What we learned from Google’s Think Measurement 2025

The customer journey is becoming an increasingly non-linear path, with so many of us streaming, scrolling, skipping and crucially, not clicking on ads. In May, Google’s Think Measurement Summit 2025 discussed the key ways that modern marketers are addressing this challenge.

Google is pushing to make data integration easier, faster and more privacy-focused. The threat of cookie deprecation over the last few years forced advertisers to seriously think about their first party data and with the Google Ads Data Manager, they are streamlining how advertisers integrate and manage that data, connecting various offline and online sources with no coding required.

Once this ‘data foundation’ is in place, marketers can unlock deeper insights using a triple threat of advanced measurement tools – Media Mix Modelling (MMM) combined with Multi-Touch Attribution and Incrementality Testing. Meridian, Google’s open-source framework, supports custom MMM models for planning upper-funnel activity. Attribution assigns value across touchpoints, while incrementality testing shows whether marketing caused measurable impact.

The Media Shop team has been highlighting the importance of feeding first-party data into Google Ads for more accurate reporting and better campaign optimisation. With easier integration and stronger data controls available through Data Manager, we expect more advertisers to start plugging their first-party data into the platform, and we encourage all our clients to do the same to remain competitive.

With strong data and smarter tools, marketers can better allocate budgets, validate effectiveness, and finally measure what Les Binet and Peter Field have been championing for years – long-term impact, not just short-term clicks.

The Media Shop bids for IPA Effectiveness Accreditation

At the heart of The Media Shop’s service lies a steadfast commitment to showcasing the tangible impact of our campaigns. The Institute of Practitioners in Advertising, as part of their role in helping member agencies and their clients succeed, has introduced an Effectiveness Accreditation which recognises agencies that demonstrate measurable returns from marketing investments.

As we continue to prioritise the delivery of impactful paid media campaigns, and align our practices with IPA standards, our account teams will intensify their focus on rigorous effectiveness processes and the evidence of outcomes. Your collaboration is invaluable in this endeavour, and we welcome your continued partnership as we strive to demonstrate the value campaigns deliver.

Client Spotlight

Ever booked a table for date night or brunch with friend? Then chances are you’ve used ResDiary, the restaurant booking software powering more than 10,000 hospitality venues around the world.

ResDiary, founded in Glasgow in 2004 and now owned by The Access Group, helps hospitality businesses tackle some of the industry’s biggest pain points – no-shows, under-utilised tables and the ability to communicate easily with customers during a busy service.

The Media Shop delivers campaigns across paid search and paid social in the UK, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand to generate Marketing Qualified Leads for the sales team. Key to the strategy is the integration of ResDiary’s CRM system, HubSpot, allowing for multi-touch attribution, bespoke audience creation using lookalike and remarketing signals, and for leads to move through a nurture path.

“The Media Shop is a really important partner for ResDiary. Not only do they help us to make efficiencies in the generation of MQLs through paid channels, but they also work as an extension of our team in an agile and responsive way, delivering a steady stream of high quality leads straight to the sales team.”
Andy Hall, Head of Growth at The Access Group