How streaming TV advertising is finally closing the loop between reach and measurable performance

For years, streaming TV has been one of advertising's most promising channels. The audience is massive. The content is premium. But the moment a viewer sees an ad and wants to act on it, the experience gets complicated: they pick up their phone, search for the product, and the connection between what they watched and what they did next gets lost somewhere in the gap.

That gap is closing. Streaming TV advertising is getting smarter, not just at reaching audiences, but at recognizing them, engaging them, and measuring what happens after the ad ends. At this year's Upfront, Amazon Ads showed what streaming TV looks like when precision and interactivity work together. Reach the right viewer. Give them a reason to act. Measure what happens next.

"We’re focused on how we’re bringing together premium content, deterministic audience signals, and AI-driven capabilities to drive more measurable outcomes," said Alan Moss, VP of Global Ad Sales, Amazon Ads. "We're helping advertisers move from planning around reach alone to delivering performance with authenticated audiences across the full funnel. All year long. At scale. For everyone."

"Consumers already treat their TV like an interactive screen—they browse, they search, they make decisions," said Jimmy White, Managing Director, Large Customer Sales, Samsung Ads. "Streaming TV advertising is evolving to match that behavior, and the brands that lean into that shift have an incredible opportunity to create experiences that feel as natural as the content around them."

It starts with truly knowing—not guessing—the consumers you're reaching. Amazon’s authenticated graph is an industry-leading technology that connects known households through Amazon's trusted relationships in shopping, streaming, and entertainment. It's not a product brands activate—it's the backend technology that automatically powers every Amazon Ads campaign, from audience targeting to frequency management to measurement.

Here's how it works: Every time customers sign in to Amazon, register a Fire TV, or stream content on Prime Video, they create reliable touchpoints. The authenticated graph technology connects these touchpoints through encrypted, pseudonymized signals—without exposing personally identifiable information to advertisers. Because these connections are tied to durable households rather than individual devices or proxy signals that frequently change, the graph maintains accuracy across screens, formats, and geographies. The result: authenticated reach extends to over 90% of U.S. households through deterministic connections rather than modeled or estimated data.

And when advertisers can accurately understand the audiences they're reaching, consumers benefit too. This precision translates into tangible improvements for everyone: 57% fewer redundant ad exposures mean less ad fatigue for consumers.¹ And threefold return on ad spend means budgets go further, with up to 3x higher conversions—less waste, better results.²

"Streaming TV is moving past modeled assumptions toward signals grounded in real behavior, and that shift is long overdue," said Kristin Haarlow, Chief Investment Officer, Starcom. "It gives us a clearer view of who we're reaching and drives more accountable decisions with clients tied to real outcomes."

Streaming TV ads work harder when viewers can act in the moment

Once you really understand your audiences, the next step is knowing how to engage them. During the 2026 Upfront, Amazon Ads announced Dynamic TV Creative, a new capability to automatically personalize Interactive Video Ads (IVA) on Prime Video series and films based on viewer shopping behavior and where the customer is in the shopping journey.

And, starting in July, IVA on Samsung TV Plus will let viewers add products to their Amazon cart, sign up, or request more information directly from their TV screen—one click of the remote, no second screen required. It's a small change in the viewing experience that represents a significant shift: the living room becoming a place where brand stories and real actions happen in the same moment.

IVA has already driven 6x higher brand search, 4x more detail page views, 4x more add-to-cart actions, and 5x higher purchase rates when compared to standard streaming TV campaigns without interactive features.³ The Samsung TV Plus expansion brings that capability to one of the largest connected TV audiences in the U.S.

"Viewers on Samsung TV Plus will be able to act on an ad the same way they'd pick their next show—with a click of the remote," White said. "That's the kind of consumer experience we set out to build with Amazon Ads, and we think advertisers are going to love what it unlocks. The partnership between Amazon DSP and Samsung Ads enables Samsung TV Plus to become a shoppable experience that drives real outcomes from awareness all the way through to conversion. Together, we're creating an environment where great storytelling and real outcomes go hand in hand."

Access is expanding, too. Through a new agreement with Comcast Advertising, Prime Video and Amazon Ads streaming inventory is now available to local and small and medium-sized business (SMB) customers for the first time—with location-based capabilities that let regional brands customize streaming messages by geography while buying at scale. Premium streaming TV advertising is no longer just a national brand's game.

"When you offer hit movies, award-winning originals, and live sports all in one destination, customers don't just tune in. They stay. And your brand can be right there with it. From interactive moments to shoppable ads, custom sponsorships to natural product integrations, you're part of the entertainment experience," said Alan Moss, VP of Global Ad Sales at Amazon Ads. "Only Amazon gives you the premium entertainment, authenticated audiences, and the insights to know what moves consumers. All in one place."

There’s a common theme emerging: streaming TV works better when it knows who it's talking to, gives those viewers a natural way to act, and can connect the impression to the outcome. That's what's new. And for brands willing to build for it now, the advantage is real.

Sources

¹ Amazon Internal data. US. March 2026.

² Amazon Internal data. US. March 2026. Based on 55K total campaigns. Results may vary across verticals.

³ Amazon internal, IVA Incrementality Study, Full Year 2025, Sample: 14,518 IVA campaigns, 9,960 IVA advertisers. Study compared IVA to standard STV campaigns without interactive features.