NAB Show Preview: Adtech drives revenue conversations as broadcast and digital converge

As the broadcast industry converges on Las Vegas for the 2025 NAB Show, monetization is set to be prominent in discussions with advertising technology shaping the future outlook. 

The annual event, running April 5-9, showcases how traditional broadcasting and digital streaming continue to merge, creating new opportunities and challenges for content delivery and advertising strategies.

The migration of premier live events from traditional linear broadcasting to streaming platforms is key in driving content distribution and monetization conversation.

“Once the crown jewel of linear broadcast networks, sports and other big events are quickly moving into the streaming realm,” said Dave Dembowski, senior vice president of global sales at Operative.

This transition creates a hybrid environment where traditional linear sales strategies meet digital delivery systems. Media companies now face the challenge of unifying their product offerings, sales approaches and operations to accommodate this convergence.

“Just because streaming is digital doesn’t mean media companies are going to automate ad sales on their top content – they’re adopting tried and true up-front fixed ad sales models, but they still want the benefits of dynamic ad delivery and reporting,” Dembowski said.

Dynamic ad insertion takes priority

Dynamic ad insertion (DAI) is critical in enabling personalized advertising across platforms, as broadcasters and streaming services deliver targeted ads to specific audiences in real time.

“Dynamic ad insertion is a hot topic this year. According to Bitmovin’s latest Video Developer Report, ad insertion is the number one biggest challenge faced by video developers today,” said Paul Davies, head of marketing at Yospace.

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The widespread adoption of advertising-supported models has intensified the focus on DAI technology and implementation strategies.

“Most streaming platforms have now embraced advertising in some form. With an increase in streaming viewership alongside this increase in advertising deployments, the need to maximize revenues using DAI has never been greater,” Davies said.

Jacques Le Mancq, CEO of Broadpeak, emphasized the financial implications of this shift: “The ongoing move to ad-supported/hybrid streaming models is a seismic shift with monetization via advertising front-of-mind for customers. Viewers increasingly accept ads as a fair trade-off for free or lower-cost content.”

Beyond basic insertion: Challenges and solutions

Industry experts note that successful advertising strategies require more than ad insertion capabilities. Technical challenges range from content preparation to seamless delivery.

“It’s one thing to apply dynamic ad insertion, it’s another altogether to harness the tech’s potential to drive maximum fill-rates at mass scale and deliver the highest possible ad revenues,” Davies said.

Anupama Anantharaman, vice president of product management at Interra Systems, pointed to a more nuanced approach to advertising.

“Broadcasters are prioritizing solutions that balance ad relevance with seamless viewer retention, moving beyond basic insertion tactics to contextual alignment,” said Anantharaman.

“To achieve maximum fill rates and drive monetization, DAI tech has to reach far beyond simple insertion: there’s meticulous content preparation required; truly dynamic adaptation to each viewer or device; tight integration across adtech workflows; and ensuring ad breaks are delivered fluidly via perfect stream stitching,” said Le Mancq on the technical complexities involved.

Measurement and performance

As ad insertion technologies advance, accurate measurement becomes increasingly important for demonstrating value to advertisers.

“The importance of accurate, trusted, real-time measurement of ad views cannot be overstated: this is a metric that matters greatly to advertisers and, therefore, by extension, ad-funded broadcasters and streaming platforms,” Davies said.

Davies also highlighted ongoing work on industry standards to address measurement challenges.

“We’ve been working closely on the new Common Media Client Data v2 (CMCDv2) standard, which will ensure ad measurement data is ‘built-in’ to the stream wherever a player is compliant with CMCDv2,” said Davies.

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Redefining inventory value

The industry appears to be shifting away from treating all ad inventory equally, with a renewed emphasis on context and content quality.

“We’ve seen the pendulum swing toward an impression-based model, where every ad placement was treated as interchangeable, leading to a race to the lowest price. But now, the industry is shifting back, recognizing the importance of advertising in context and the value of premium programming,” said Steve Reynolds, chief executive officer of Imagine Communications.

This recalibration of value prioritizes premium content environments over raw impression numbers.

“Advertisers and content owners are rediscovering that where an ad appears matters — not just who sees it. Brand safety, audience engagement and the impact of premium content environments are once again being prioritized,” Reynolds said.

“One key trend is the merging of linear and digital strengths — what we at Imagine Communications call ‘re-linearization.’ Digital platforms are now enabling mass audience reach while offering data-driven insights and attribution, creating a hybrid approach that blends the best of both worlds,” said Reynolds on an emerging trend blending traditional and digital strengths.

Looking ahead

The convergence of traditional and digital advertising models continues to shape the future of broadcast monetization.

“One of the most exciting trends is the need for vendors to facilitate the delivery of the blend of monetization, personalization and streaming-at-scale strategies that customers need, all underpinned by advanced security,” Le Mancq said.

As the 2025 NAB Show unfolds, the industry will examine how these technologies and strategies can help media companies navigate the evolving advertising landscape across both traditional broadcast and digital environments.