How DoubleVerify's IMDb Deal Tackles $1B CTV Waste Problem
DoubleVerify's IMDb partnership addresses $1B+ quarterly waste from CTV ad misplacement. New AI-powered solution verifies 15% of programmatic ads landing outside premium streaming environments.
DoubleVerify unveiled DV Authentic Streaming TV at CES 2026 on January 6, integrating IMDb entertainment data to address transparency gaps that cost advertisers over US$1 billion quarterly in misplaced connected TV ad spending.
IMDb Partnership Tackles Ad Misplacement Crisis
The new solution combines planning, reporting, and optimization tools into a single workflow for streaming campaigns. Through a licensing agreement with IMDb, advertisers gain access to verified program-level signals including genre classifications, maturity ratings, premiere dates, and viewer-approval scores.
The timing addresses urgent market needs. While 83% of Americans use streaming services, mostly preferring ad-supported options, DoubleVerify's research shows 15% of programmatic connected TV ads intended for premium environments appear outside branded streaming players. This misplacement represents more than US$1 billion in wasted quarterly spend. Nearly 70% of marketers report they cannot justify streaming TV investments without improved transparency.
"The industry has been demanding better transparency and addressability in streaming TV, and today DV is delivering it," stated CEO Mark Zagorski in the company's announcement.
AI-Powered Controls Replace Manual Workflows
DV Authentic Streaming TV includes a natural-language planning agent that translates conversational content preferences into pre-bid controls and exclusions. This replaces manual "Do Not Air" workflows with automated enforcement before ads run.
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Post-bid measurement provides campaign delivery metrics and content-relevance signals, normalized across languages and geographies using DoubleVerify's global taxonomy. The product uses the DV Scibids AI engine to optimize spending toward content delivering stronger reach and conversions based on advertiser performance goals. A drag-and-drop interface enables teams to modify optimization parameters without technical expertise.
David Goddard, Senior Vice President at DoubleVerify, noted that "IMDb data enriches our AI-powered analysis with deeper contextual signals."
Regional Implications for Asian Markets
The launch carries significance for Asia's advertising landscape, where Southeast Asia's ad market reached US$39 billion in 2023 with 6% annual growth. Regional streaming adoption outpaces traditional TV, with 51% of Southeast Asian viewers watching ad-supported streaming multiple times weekly.
However, Asian markets face distinct measurement challenges. Household co-viewing patterns, particularly prevalent in the region, create gaps between device impressions and true reach. A single streaming session might reach 500,000 viewers but register only 300,000 device impressions, complicating campaign attribution.
Singapore's over-the-top video penetration is projected to reach 72.8% by 2029, representing 4.5 million users. South Korea's free ad-supported streaming TV market is expected to reach US$48 million by 2030, driven by Korean content expansion. The broader Asia Pacific video streaming market was valued at US$27 billion in 2023.
Implementation Timeline and Features
The initial release includes planning, optimization, and select reporting functions. DoubleVerify plans to roll out additional features in future updates, though specific timelines were not disclosed. The solution's normalized taxonomy aims to support global campaigns, including those targeting Asian markets with different languages and content classification systems.
Industry analyst Dave Morgan, CEO of Simulmedia, emphasized the market need: "Transparency in streaming has never been more critical. Advertisers need proof their dollars go toward premium inventory."
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