Report: Live events the new battleground of audience engagement

February 6, 2025

Samba TV, a specialist in AI technology for media analytics, has released its State of Viewership Report for the second half of 2024, analysing 51 billion hours of linear and streaming TV consumption in the US to uncover key trends and emerging opportunities shaping the future of television and advertising. The report highlights a surge in total television viewership driven by major live events, ad-supported streaming gaining widespread adoption, and the growing impact of AI-powered contextual targeting in transforming advertising effectiveness.

“Live events are the new battleground of audience engagement – transforming passive viewers into active participants while rewriting the rules of media consumption,” said Samba TV Co-founder and CEO Ashwin Navin. “As streaming and linear audiences converge around live sports, we’re witnessing a seismic shift where AI-driven insights turn fragmented viewership into strategic opportunity, turning every screen into a precision-targeted canvas of brand connection.”

Samba TV’s State of Viewership Report breaks down the latest trends in linear and Connected TV (CTV), revealing how audiences engage across traditional broadcast and OTT platforms. Packed with insights, it uncovers the shifting dynamics of TV consumption and the key forces reshaping the industry.

Key findings from the report include:

Ad-Supported Streaming Surges, Unlocking Premium Inventory

TV consumption soared in late 2024 – streaming hours up 56 per cent YoY, linear TV at a two-year high (+8 per cent) – driven by the Presidential election, Olympics, crime shows and docudramas.
Netflix drives the broadest media consumption, with 72 per cent watching multiple shows. Rivals struggle with single-title stickiness – spotlighting the need for better content discovery.
Ads drive viewership: Audiences exposed to promos for top streaming shows are as much as 7x more likely to watch. A halo effect fuels deeper content discovery, boosting retention and cutting churn.
Of all the streamers, Prime Video led the way with promotional advertising during the second half (impressions up 72 per cent), capitalising on the new ad-tier launch and continuing to focus on live sporting events like Thursday Night Football.
Overall, ad-supported streaming continues to surge, with 56 per cent of new streaming subscriptions opting for an ad-supported option.

Live Sports & Politics Dominate, Redefining Audience Engagement

Viewership of the presidential debates beat the NFL by more than 10 million households, proving politics can pull Super Bowl-sized audiences. The Paris Olympics drew massive crowds, up 11 per cent from both Tokyo and 25 per cent from Beijing, with women’s sports leading double-digit growth. NBCU leveraged the Olympics to drive significant subscription growth for Peacock through extensive live and on-demand programming.
Streamers bet big on live sports – Thursday Night Football (TNF) and the Jake Paul vs Mike Tyson fight drove record sign-ups for Prime Video and Netflix, respectively. TNF’s average viewership increased by 51 per cent year-over-year, validating the strategy to expand the NFL’s digital distribution footprint.
Max’s The Penguin and Paramount+’s Landman were the top shows of the half, breaking through Netflix’s expansive approach to content with strategic investments with existing fanbases. However, 33 of the top 50 streaming shows were on Netflix.
The Harris vs Trump debate topped linear ratings, and the majority of swing states showed a clear preference for Fox News over MSNBC, offering early signals about which way the country was leaning. Meanwhile, campaign ads blanketed US households, shaping voter sentiment.

Ad Spend Isn’t Enough—Winning Brands Crack the Code on Targeting and Engagement

Half of TV households see 150 ads daily, yet high-income households get 15 fewer per day than lower-income households, exposing a major inefficiency in reaching affluent, streaming-first consumers.
Entertainment (18 per cent), Pharma (12 per cent), Health & Beauty (11 per cent), and Food & Beverage (9 per cent) drive nearly half of TV ad volume. Insurance lags at 4 per cent, but Progressive continues to have the most ad impressions of any brand on TV.
Macy’s, Kohl’s and Walmart flooded holiday ad rankings, concentrating budgets during peak shopping months, while some retailers and restaurants pulled back—leaving room for challengers.
Political ad spend rose just 28 per cent YoY, with MAGA-supportive brands, such as Fox News Radio, leading election-cycle buys. Meanwhile, energy companies slashed budgets (-27 per cent).
Capital One dominated MLB World Series Game 5 logo exposure (2.6B impressions), while Mastercard (34 intervals) reached similar households with fewer touchpoints – highlighting high-frequency vs broad-placement strategies.
Contextual targeting connects Attention to Intention for top holiday retailers, with Macy’s driving the most media impressions, WalMart receiving the most positive online conversations, and Amazon receiving the lowest positive and lowest negative sentiment.

Navin added: “While on a multi-year downward trend, even linear TV has seen a bump in popularity from news and current events that started during the election season in Q4. Brands are now wrestling with how to present themselves in a chaotic news cycle that touches on emotionally charged topics like immigration, tariffs, and geopolitical events that will undoubtedly impact every industry and our way of life. What’s the safe bet? Live sports and streaming TV. While the industry is grappling with how to interpret the influence of AI on brand building and marketing and trying to sift between hype and true innovation, one thing that is not up for debate is this: Live events are drawing massive audiences across all platforms. And these platforms (Amazon and YouTube TV with NFL, Apple TV+ with MLS, Netflix with WWE) are investing heavily to capitalise.”

Report: Live events the new battleground of audience engagement

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