We’re living in a paradox.
People are watching more television than ever — yet it’s never been harder to monetize that attention. Why? Because the way we reach, and measure audiences is fragmented and inefficient.
Across the globe, linear TV, CTV, AVOD, FAST, and D2C platforms are thriving in parallel, but they don’t talk to each other. Advertisers are chasing the same viewers across multiple platforms, buying the same impression nine different ways. The inventory is undifferentiated, the pricing inconsistent, and the measurement opaque. It’s no wonder advertiser confidence is eroding.
But here’s the good news: we can fix this — and we’re already doing it.
Why TV advertising is broken:
the impact of fragmentation
The core issue facing today’s media industry is fragmentation — in both audience behavior and ad delivery infrastructure. Consumers have more choices than ever, but that also means they’re harder to reach. From smart TVs to YouTube, Netflix to FAST, there’s no unified system to plan, buy, and deliver advertising effectively across all these channels.
And while viewers are consuming more content — with average viewing time up across most demographics — advertisers are seeing less value because they can’t reach those audiences efficiently or measure performance consistently.
What do we mean by Total TV?
Total TV is the unification of traditional and digital television advertising, giving advertisers the ability to plan, buy, deliver, and measure campaigns seamlessly across all TV environments. It combines the broad reach of broadcast with the precision of digital, ensuring every impression is valued and accounted for — no matter where viewers are watching.
Reclaiming value with audience-based ad buying
One of the biggest missed opportunities in our industry is the lack of differentiated inventory. When advertisers can reach the same viewer through multiple channels, the instinct is to buy the cheapest impression — not the best placement. That race to the bottom devalues inventory and strips context from campaigns.
What’s missing is a consistent way to sell audience in context — for example, being the last ad before kick-off across all platforms. With the right systems, that level of precision is not only possible — it’s essential.
How Imagine enables cross-platform ad sales and measurement
At Imagine Communications, we’re focused on solving these problems through technology that supports:
- Cross-platform inventory management
- Dynamic ad decisioning across linear, on-demand and streaming
- End-to-end reconciliation and proof-of-performance
We don’t just help broadcasters manage content; we help them monetize it with confidence. Our integrations with partners like SAP, Salesforce, and Google Ad Manager ensure seamless workflows and accurate, auditable results.
International markets are leading the way in Total TV
Markets like the UK, Australia, and the Nordics are proving that Total TV can work. By aligning on common audience currencies, adopting automation, and streamlining the buy-sell interface, these regions are eliminating inefficiencies — and even eliminating make-goods in many cases.
So what’s stopping others? In most cases, it’s not technology. It’s coordination.
The path forward:
from silos to smart collaboration
We don’t need to reinvent the wheel — but we do need to advance how the industry works. Success depends on cooperation between buyers, sellers, tech platforms, and measurement providers. When everyone speaks the same language — audience — we all win.
At Imagine, we’re committed to building the systems that support this transformation. But we need the ecosystem to come together to realize the full potential of Total TV.
🎥 Want to hear more?
Watch my conversation with Rick Howe, The iTV Doctor about how Total TV is evolving and what it means for the future of advertising:
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Smashing the Silo Barrier:
How Total TV Is Revolutionizing Ad Sales
To learn more about how Total TV is transforming ad operations and how broadcasters around the world are putting it into practice.
