The TVOT Montreal 2026 conference, held May 20–21 at the Alt Hotel, centered on how streaming technology and smart TVs are shifting from a focus on subscription volume to community-driven engagement, localized curation, and advanced, data-first advertising.

Key takeaways from the event include:

• Navigating the Streaming Plateau. SVOD subscription growth has plateaued. According to Parks Associates’ most recent Video Services Dashboard, 91% of US internet households have one or more SVOD services, with the average US Internet households having 5.5 video subscriptions (pay-TV + SVOD). SVOD services have reached a point where viewers want more value, not more subscriptions. At TVOT Montreal, industry leaders stressed that the future of connected TV (CTV) lies in flexible models, audience-first journeys, and community at scale (i.e., scaling engagement from a single, intimate group into decentralized, peer-to-peer networks) rather than mass audience duplication.
• The Immersive Smart TV Shift. Smart TV platforms, such as Tizen (Samsung) and WebOS (LG), which together account for 51% of the smart TV OS installed base, are redefining viewer engagement, merging television with interactive, metaverse-like experiences. Experts highlighted that developers are redesigning TV interfaces to better integrate immersive viewing, gaming, and IP-based architectures (enabling 4K HDR and Dolby Atmos).
• Retail Media and Outcome-Driven Advertising. During her panel, Retail Media, Budget Gravity, and the Future of Brand Growth, at TVOT Montreal 2026, Lauren Sally, Chief Client Officer at The Brand Power Company, discussed how retail media is changing advertising budgets. According to Sally, “retail media (i.e., a form of advertising where brands buy ad space directly on a retailer’s owned digital properties, such as websites and mobile apps, or physical stores) has shifted from a tactical line item to a core strategic driver, forcing brands to balance immediate demand capture with long-term demand creation. This budget gravity demands organizational alignment to prevent short-term, point-of-sale metrics from eroding overall brand equity.”
• AI and Biometric Personalization. Artificial intelligence is actively transforming the viewer experience through advanced user-interface personalization and improved programming discovery. In addition, Fox Corporation and Mediaprobe presented research that analyzed over 8,000 hours of biometric data across 40+ studies. The research demonstrated how measuring physical signals, companies can map the biological signatures of individual viewers/fans to optimize ad effectiveness.
• The In-Vehicle Content Revolution: The car is becoming the next great frontier for media consumption. LG discussed bringing its webOS platform into vehicles, allowing entertainment applications to run independently of the car's underlying hardware, which would ensure long-term app support and dynamic updates. Furthermore, platforms and automakers (OEMs) discussed the need for dedicated in-car content and audio strategies to turn daily commutes into primetime entertainment.
• Community over Content Model. Younger audiences now define premium viewing by relevance and connection rather than just high production value. Broadcasters and platforms, such as CBC/Radio-Canada and Quebecor, are focusing on data-driven community at scale, utilizing clean rooms (i.e., secure, privacy-compliant environments where multiple parties, such as brands, retailers, and publishers, can combine and analyze their first-party data without exposing raw personally identifiable information) for targeted first-party data and leveraging creator-driven content to hook viewers.
• Curation and Localization. As CTV and free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) saturate global markets, localized curation and content-programming are critical for retention and discovery. Xperi highlighted the role of deep metadata indexing, which allows platforms to automatically group international content into localized, culturally relevant programming buckets without manual human intervention for every region.

TVOT Montreal 2026 underscored that the television ecosystem is no longer defined by passive viewership or sheer subscriber volume. The industry's path forward relies on interactive, AI-driven personalization, performance-based advertising, and deep community integration. Survival in this new era requires broadcasters and platforms to seamlessly blend traditional content creation with next-generation technology to meet viewers wherever they are.

Parks Associates’ “Streaming Video Tracker” and our Dashboard services can deliver this necessary intelligence on the video services ecosystem. Contact us for more information.