Ad-supported streaming dominates
Nielsen says ad-supported streaming now accounts for 66.7% of streaming viewing and 81% when looking only at ad tiers—meaning most viewers are on ad-supported plans. That shift increases inventory for sponsored integrations and FAST/AVOD-focused branded content. (x.com)
Nielsen released "The 2026 Upfront Planning Guide" on March 12, 2026, breaking out ad‑supported TV viewing by platform and demographics. (nielsen.com) The report shows sports programming accounted for nearly 30% of all ad‑supported TV viewing in Q4 2025, making live sports a major driver of ad inventory. (marketingdive.com) Within streaming, FAST channels comprised roughly 18.9% of ad‑supported streaming programming, while Nielsen groups much of the remaining streaming ad viewing under an “other ad‑supported” category that includes YouTube, Hulu, Prime Video, Peacock and Paramount+. (deadline.com) Broadcast TV excluding sports represented just 9.8% of total ad‑supported viewership in Q4 2025, underscoring the migration of ad impressions away from non‑sport linear inventory. (finance.yahoo.com) Nielsen clarifies its streaming metrics are drawn from Streaming Meter‑enabled TV households within its National TV panel, meaning the platform breakouts reflect metered household viewing data rather than solely CTV server logs. (nielsen.com) Earlier Nielsen data showed content with ads reached 73.6% of overall TV viewing in Q2 2025, signaling a multi‑quarter trend toward ad‑supported consumption that underpins increased branded‑content opportunities on streaming tiers. (nielsen.com) The guide explicitly advises treating linear, streaming and FAST as a single integrated ecosystem for upfront planning, a strategy that shifts planning toward cross‑platform sponsorships, FAST/AVOD integrations and platform‑specific branded formats. (nielsen.com)
