TVREV

So it was just two weeks ago that we were looking at what people were watching on YouTube when they watched it on TV and noting that Netflix, which few would argue is not TV, was already rolling out short-form vertical video in the form of previews and that it was likely also preparing to introduce more vertical short-form content on their mobile app. Turns out we were half-right. They will indeed be launching short-form video from the likes of Architectural Digest, Buzzfeed and Vanity Fair.

The chart above, using Tubular data, shows the shift over time. During Q3 and into Q4 of last year, videos running 2-to-5 minutes long were accounting for less than 15.5% of U.S. media companies’ YouTube views. Yet, they also made up over a quarter of uploads. That relationship was inefficient. What’s followed has been less so as the line for upload percentage around 2-to-5 minute videos has steadily declined (to 23.43% in June 2026).

For much of the past two decades, America's local television stations have taken comfort in one remarkably durable competitive advantage: trust. As newspapers struggled with shrinking circulation, disappearing advertising and depleted newsrooms, public confidence in the local press steadily eroded. Local radio, too, became a shadow of its former self as consolidation, automation and syndicated programming gradually replaced locally produced news and personalities.

So often I go to industry events and take a few notes, but all the conversations blend into one, and by the time I get home, I’m generally inspired and exhausted and the takeaways aren’t as sharp.

The old television advertising bargain was simple. The programme earned the audience. The brand paid to stand beside it. That bargain still works in plenty of places. But it no longer explains where the most interesting value in television is starting to form. In earlier columns, I argued that formats are becoming operating systems for IP, and that value compounds or leaks depending on how deliberately its movement is designed. The same logic now applies to who pays for the IP in the first place.

For decades, addressable advertising has been one of broadcast television's biggest unrealized opportunities. The technology existed. The demand existed. But the infrastructure—and industry alignment—never quite came together. That may finally be changing.

In this latest Innovator Spotlight from our new report The TV OS Wars: The Battle For The Living Room, Ventura TV OS’s Rob Caruso explains how a better ad experience translates into a better viewing expreience. You can download the report for free thanks to Ventura TV OS and our other sponsors, WunderKIND Ads and V. “We want people engaging with and enjoying what’s on their television sets” notes Rob Caruso, Senior Vice President, Consumer Products, Ventura TV OS at The Trade Desk.

Mark Marshall, Chairman of Global Advertising and Partnerships at NBCUniversal, joins Friend of TVREV, the ageless Justin Lebbon to discuss how the company plans to sustain its growth following a blockbuster year for sports. Marshall explains how NBCUniversal aims to win advertising spend from social platforms, why expanding demand through the "messy middle" is critical, and what that strategy entails.

Comcast’s vertical integration strategy—having a cable company own a major media company—made a lot of sense in its day, but the Fox-Roku strategy of owning a major streaming platform makes far more sense in 2026. Which is why Brian Roberts is doing the opposite of what Lachlan Murdoch just did and is getting rid of NBCU. Or at least splitting it and Sky off from the Comcast parts of the empire.

While media companies continue to cover what’s been a rich amount of sports news this summer, the more noticeable June shift was toward theatrical trailers. Tubular Labs data looks at U.S. media creators’ YouTube presence in June. And one of the major takeaways? Most are incredibly focused on getting audiences in movie theater seats.