[adrotate group=”1″]
Canada’s media landscape is shifting fast — and the second half of 2025 will separate the winners from the rest. In this exclusive Canadian Advertising and Media Midyear Check-In series, industry leaders share the insights and strategies media buyers and planners can’t afford to miss.
In the second edition of our interview series, we speak with the team at the thinktv to gain a deeper understanding of the Canadian TV industry. As brands increasingly seek meaningful, high-impact ways to engage audiences, OOH is undergoing a dynamic transformation—blending traditional formats with digital innovation, new measurement techniques, and evolving consumer behaviours.
We explored the first half of 2025, including how thinktv supports industry growth, as the marketing and research association dedicated to the advancement of commercial television.
How has the role of television advertising evolved in the first six months of 2025, and what new opportunities are available for advertisers to connect with viewers?
thinktv - The first half of 2025 has shown some encouraging viewing trends that may
challenge prevailing narratives. Linear television viewing has demonstrated
unexpected resilience with viewing hours increasing 1.3% in the Spring compared
to Fall 2024, while YouTube viewing declined.
The audience numbers tell a compelling story: In Ontario, adults 18+ are watching
an average of 15.8 hours of TV weekly, with weekly reach holding steady at 82%.
In Quebec, we are seeing particularly impressive numbers with television reaching
90% of Francophone viewers in the province who watch an average of 26.5 hours
each week.
What continues to evolve is how television content is viewed with most
Canadians watching both linear television and streaming platforms. Take the
recent election coverage: while linear audiences remained strong, digital
engagement grew exponentially with CTV News streaming up fivefold and
streaming on CBC up 127%. The Super Bowl illustrated this perfectly with a digital
audience increase of 95% even as linear viewership softened slightly over last
year’s record-breaking audiences.
The opportunity for advertisers lies in this evolving and expanding television
ecosystem. Premium Connected TV inventory from broadcasters is experiencing
explosive growth, with some broadcasters projecting increases of over 300% this
year alone. This represents a massive opportunity for advertisers to enjoy the
best of both worlds: linear television's trusted, brand-safe, premium content
environment combined with advanced data-driven targeting capabilities.
Beyond traditional viewership, what surprises have ThinkTV's research
uncovered about how Canadians are consuming content and responding to TV
advertising?
thinktv - Our research consistently reveals that Canadian viewing habits differ dramatically
from those in the U.S. Yet, too many advertisers still rely on American data.
Canadians stream significantly less than Americans, while linear TV makes up a
much higher percentage of total viewing, making television even more valuable in
our media landscape.
...........
From an advertising effectiveness standpoint, our data shows television maintains
unmatched performance across key metrics. Canadians consistently rate TV
advertising as the most trusted, most attention-getting, and most purchase-
influencing medium.
Attention research from Lumen has been particularly revealing. Television delivers
superior cost-per-attentive-second and profit-driving capability compared to
other media. Which, of course, stems from television's unique viewing
environment: sound-on, trusted, non-skippable, and full-screen viewing by human
beings – an attention environment that is difficult to find elsewhere.
What is the most crucial skill or strategy that a media planner needs to
develop in the latter half of 2025 to effectively integrate television into a multi-
platform campaign?
thinktv - The most critical development we have observed is the movement away from
relying solely on audience numbers towards a more thorough understanding of
attention metrics.
We are seeing successful planners shift from traditional CPM thinking to
attention-based planning. Television's strength lies not just in reach, but in the
quality of that reach - the focused and engaged attention that viewers give to TV
content and advertising.
The television industry now offers multiple touchpoints for reaching audiences.
Advertisers are using linear TV as their reach foundation, then layering Connected
TV for precision targeting and demographic extension. What we are advising is
that advertisers and agencies maintain direct relationships with Canadian
broadcasters (Bell Media, Rogers Sports & Media, Corus, CBC) to ensure quality
inventory and avoid frequency overlap.
The other crucial skill is the ability to question assumptions with reputable
Canadian data. Our Ad Nation research reveals that advertising professionals
consistently overestimate social media consumption and underestimate
television's continued relevance. Successful planners have a market orientation
that allows them to look beyond their own media habits and industry
assumptions to create effective advertising campaigns that deliver results for
their clients.
With the continued fragmentation of media, how can advertisers use the
power of TV to drive brand effectiveness and achieve consistent reach across
different demographics?
thinktv - What we see across all our research is that television remains uniquely valuable in our fragmented media landscape, where attention is scarce.
Total TV is the dominant video consumption platform across every demographic,
including young adults. Advertisers can now plan campaigns that integrate linear
television and Connected TV. This Total TV strategy allows for seamless audience
coverage: the "vast and fast" reach of linear television provides advertisers with
consistent brand-building in a superior attention environment, while the data-
driven targeting capabilities of Connected TV allows them to extend that reach
and fine-tune their messaging to specific audience segments.
Television’s emotional impact and trust serves as a cultural touchstone that cuts
through fragmentation to deliver experiences that bring Canadians together,
whether it is 16.6M people watching the Super Bowl, 11.5M fans watching the 4
Nations Face Off, or record audiences for coverage of the federal election. Smart
advertisers can use television’s emotional impact and trust to build brands, while
leveraging Connected TV to achieve consistent and measurable results across
every demographic.
Be sure to check back in our first instalment in the series with the Canadian Out Of Home Marketing & Measurement Bureau (COMMB).
[adrotate banner=”6″]
