Advertisers and viewers have embraced the old-school, live and appointment-viewing model on CTV.

What’s old is new again on connected TV, as both viewers and marketers have embraced live broadcasts and appointment viewing. The shift is being driven not so much by consumers, but by brands that see tremendous value in advertising to live, captive audiences.

“Advertisers aren’t just reacting to live and appointment viewing—they’re driving it,” says Todd Porch, CEO of Strategus, a CTV buying platform. “As real-time cultural moments become more valuable, brands want to be a part of them when they happen, not after.”

For years, streaming was marketed as an alternative to appointment-based linear television, where viewers could watch what they want, when they want — and largely without ads. But as streamers have implemented ad-supported streaming options, they have also embraced live programming and appointment-based distribution models.

Instead of pouring billions of dollars into producing more prestige series, streamers have shifted some of their focus into acquiring live sports programming, which has emerged as one of the most valuable assets in CTV. The latest high-profile acquisition was Apple buying the exclusive U.S. streaming rights for F1 racing for $150 million years — not coincidentally, right on the heels of the box office success of the Apple-produced F1: The Film starring Brad Pitt.

“Live tentpole events were a key feature of the Upfronts this year, with all the major publishers showcasing their offerings — particularly in sports and particularly on digital platforms,” says Harry Browne, vice president of TV, Audio & Display Innovation at Tinuiti, a performance marketing agency. “You can see this particularly with NBC, who put their ownership of the Super Bowl, Winter Olympics, and NBA All Star Game front-and-center, and Google's announcement that YouTube would stream the first NFL game of the season for free.”

Streamers have even embraced good, old-fashioned live viewing for other kinds of programming, as well. This spring, Netflix revived the late night talk show format with Everybody’s Live with John Mulaney, which was broadcast in real-time. The streamer also offered live broadcasts of a Katt Williams comedy special and the roast of NFL legend Tom Brady. In June, Paramount+ live streamed the Tony Awards for its subscribers.

Even theatrical shows have embraced a more appointment-viewing type of model. Many streamers have opted to release new episodes of their hit series week-by-week, as opposed to the all-at-once model that once set streaming apart. Apple’s Your Friends and Neighbors and HBO’s Hacks are both released on a weekly model. Love Island, the hit reality show of the summer, released new episodes on a daily basis for weeks, coaxing viewers to watch each night to avoid having the results spoiled by social media.

Take all of these programming changes together, and CTV, which was supposed to release us from the shackles of appointment viewing, is starting to resemble the linear television of old.

Part of this embrace of live programming is that CTV allows marketers to measure the effectiveness of their live commercials with unprecedented depth and precision, according to Jason Fairchild, CEO of tvScientific, a CTV measurement and optimization platform. The allure of linear TV advertising was that it was great for brand awareness, but it was difficult to measure the downstream effects. With CTV, Fairchild says, brands can both build awareness and measure conversions, such as lifts in site traffic, searches and even if the people who viewed a commercial eventually purchased the brand.

It’s in this way that live CTV programming offers the best of linear TV (mass brand exposure) with the strengths of digital advertising (accurate measurement and optimized ad budgets).

“Live TV prioritizes mass reach and timely placement, while streaming can deliver precision, personalization, and performance,” as Porch puts it.

So it’s no wonder why streamers and marketers are leaning in to live. Now get back to the couch, the show is about to come back from commercials.