SAN FRANCISCO, April 28, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Upwave, the Brand Outcomes Measurement Platform, and IRIS.TV, the leading content data marketplace for streaming media, today released a new report, “The Brand-Building Power of Contextual Targeting on CTV.” As advertisers navigate growing challenges in the streaming ecosystem, the report spotlights how aligning ads with content drives measurable improvements across brand metrics—based on insights gathered through Upwave’s platform.
The Contextual Advantage in a Fragmented CTV Landscape
With Connected TV (CTV) now representing 41% of total viewing time and more than 85% of U.S. households streaming, advertisers face mounting complexity in managing reach, frequency, and measurement across platforms. Contextual targeting has emerged as a scalable and effective solution—and Upwave’s data shows that IRIS.TV is helping brands cut through the noise and deliver stronger brand impact.
Proven Performance Across the Brand Funnel
Upwave Portfolio Analytics reveals that contextual campaigns using IRIS-enabled™ data significantly outperformed standard CTV benchmarks—generating 2x lift in Awareness, 3x in Ad Recall, and 5x in Favorability compared to Upwave’s Tactic Norms for CTV. These results highlight the value of real-time, content-aligned ad placements in driving deeper consumer engagement and better brand performance.
“Advertisers are under more pressure than ever to prove the value of their brand investments—especially in environments as fragmented as CTV. Our data shows that IRIS-enabledTM contextual targeting is cutting through the clutter and delivering measurable brand impact,” said Chris Kelly, CEO of Upwave. “Together we’re proving that real-time ad placements are a smart way to drive real Brand Outcomes.”
Case Study: Carl’s Jr. Drives Full-Funnel Impact with Contextual CTV
In 2024, PMG, the leading global independent marketing services and technology company, partnered with IRIS.TV to boost store visits and sales for their client Carl’s Jr. In addition to standard targeting methods, including first-party identity and demographic data, PMG leveraged IRIS-enabled contextual targeting to reach key audiences watching CTV. Upwave’s analysis showed the campaign outperformed both Platform Norms and QSR Industry Norms across the full brand funnel—demonstrating the power of strategic content alignment.
“With CTV content often consumed on hundreds of apps and shared devices like smart TVs, our customers want to ensure the intended target audience watches their ads,” said Mike Treon, Head of Connected TV Strategy at PMG. “When our customers' campaigns target IRIS-enabled data, we have not only seen superior lifts in upper funnel KPIs like ad recall and brand favorability, but across all business outcomes.”
“Aligning ads with content isn't just intuitive - it's proven to be highly effective when executed with IRIS-enabled data,” said Field Garthwaite, CEO & Co-founder, of IRIS.TV. “Today, the smart TV is the most valuable screen in the household, but unlike a mobile device, we don’t know who is watching. Our partnership with Upwave confirms that when advertisers have access to real-time data about what viewers are watching through IRIS.TV, consumers are likely to be more aware, and have positive sentiment towards a brand.”
To access the full report, see here.
About Upwave
Upwave is the Brand Outcomes Measurement Platform. The only company entirely focused on measuring and optimizing brand lift driven by advertising, the world’s leading advertisers, agencies, and media partners trust Upwave’s robust, AI-driven, SaaS platform. Upwave brings science to top-of-funnel, providing real-time, top-of-funnel measurement for CTV, Digital, Retail Media, Social, Streaming Audio, Linear, and Addressable. The company is based in San Francisco and New York and backed by leading Silicon Valley venture capital investors. Learn more at www.upwave.com.
About IRIS.TV
IRIS.TV, a Viant Technology company, is the leading content data marketplace for streaming. We structure, connect, and activate the world's video-level data to create better viewing experiences and advertising outcomes. Our content identifier, the IRIS_ID, enables our partners to build scalable advertising solutions for contextual and brand-suitability planning, targeting, and measurement. Learn more about the IRIS_ID and the IRIS-enabled™ ecosystem of premium sellers, data partners, and ad platforms at www.iris.tv.
Media Contacts
| John McCartney | Brittany Tibaldi |
| JMAC PR for Upwave | KCSA for IRIS.TV |
| upwave@jmacpr.com | IRIS@kcsa.com |
