Nearly 5% of CTV Ad Inventory Isn't Actually on a TV Screen, Study Finds

A study by measurement firm 51 Degrees, which independently classified the device behind 11 million OpenRTB ad impressions over one week in May, found that almost 5% of inventory sold as CTV was mislabeled and actually delivered on non-television devices. Because CTV inventory commands a significantly higher CPM than standard video, the firm says the mislabeling both inflates prices for advertisers and hands a revenue uplift to publishers misrepresenting their inventory, whether by accident or fraud.

Key takeaway: Even a modest 5% mislabeling rate is enough to meaningfully distort CTV pricing at scale, adding pressure on buyers and ad-supported VaaS platforms alike to verify device-level signals rather than trust self-reported inventory labels.

Source: https://uk.themedialeader.com/almost-5-of-inventory-sold-as-ctv-is-not-on-a-television-set-study-claims/