Upfronts and Beyond CTV Playbook

In 2026, CTV has evolved from an emerging Upfront opportunity into an established part of the media mix. The question is no longer whether to invest, but how to make every CTV dollar work harder.

That's why we created the Upfronts and Beyond Playbook which brings together perspectives from advertising leaders on the trends shaping this Upfront season, alongside insights from our proprietary Yahoo DSP CTV Upfronts Survey, to explore how these shifts will impact advertisers going forward.

At Yahoo DSP, our goal is to turn these trends into meaningful opportunities that drive CTV campaign success. From our conversations with industry leaders and survey results, one thing is clear: realizing the full value of CTV requires the flexibility and precision that only programmatic can deliver.

Some of what the data is telling us:

• 90% of respondents believe that data diversity will play a pivotal role in advertising strategy.
• 80% think agentic AI will be embedded in CTV campaign workflows, sooner than you'd think.
• 88% say transparency around content-level publisher information is essential.

Source: Yahoo DSP CTV Upfronts Survey conducted by Advertiser Perceptions, Feb 2026