Since its debut in 1925, television has had the same purpose: to inform people about significant events and to entertain them. However, television’s format has evolved rapidly over time. Mechanical television reigned supreme from the 1920s through the 1930s, but significant technical developments over the years paved the way for the creation of today’s television.
It would indeed be interesting to examine the difference between traditional, linear, Connected TV (CTV) and over-the-top (OTT) streaming services, as well as how each TV advertising system operates. The viewer can access television programs through a variety of service arrangements, including linear, on-demand, recommendation, and mixed. The models clearly differ, so let’s look at them.
Linear television operates by airing TV shows on certain channels at predetermined times. In other words, the viewer must tune in at a specific time to see the programmes they wish to watch. It is a conventional content delivery system that has been used as a mechanism since the very beginning. As time passed, the viewers might record a specific episode on a DVR and watch it later. However, viewers have no control over the displayed content – they must watch whatever is on at the moment.
The over-the-top concept consists of video-streaming platforms that are linked to the TV set and have Internet connectivity. Traditionally, signals were received through radio waves, a cable, or a satellite, but OTT refers to sending “over the top” of existing infrastructure, such as the Internet. To access OTT services, a viewer must have a smart TV, smartphone, tablet, computer, gaming console, or a streaming device such as AppleTV or Roku. Advertising on OTT is identical to advertising on linear TV, with the exception that adverts are delivered via streaming platforms.
As previously stated, devices connected to the Internet are required for the OTT model to function. These gadgets are referred to as linked TV or CTV. Smart TVs, game consoles, and streaming gadgets are examples of CTV. However, according to the IAB Tech Lab, laptops, cellphones, and tablets are not considered CTV since they are versatile devices that are not intimately tied to television.
Each content distribution strategy introduces new technological opportunities and constraints for viewers. Essentially, they may rely on the linear paradigm that is already on TV. People utilise sophisticated television to view programmes and entertainment when and how they want. There are content discovery services that enable viewers to obtain recommendations of what they would like as an extension of sophisticated television. Viewers of HbbTV, for example, can access extra information about programmes and advertisements by simply clicking on the remote control. Connecting the Internet to television also transformed the television advertising sector. Advertisers now have a variety of choices for addressing their target demographic in their homes. The engagement might be formal, as in the linear television advertising paradigm, or more intimate, as in the other situations. Trends in the TV advertising sector demonstrate that linear television is becoming a thing of the past and that innovative technologies will rule the future.
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