Analyst Sees Shift in Ad Spending to Mobile Devices as Linear TV Viewing Shrinks

Brands will be forced to shift advertising from TV to mobile devices, BTIG analyst Richard Greenfield wrote investors Tuesday. Although must-watch live TV events such as sports and awards shows will continue to make a strong case for live TV, “The concept of flipping through channels and watching linear, live TV will fade away for most consumers,” Greenfield said. Shifting TV ad dollars away from TV networks to mobile will benefit platforms including Facebook, Google, Instagram, Snapchat and Twitter, Greenfield said. Citing enthusiasm from CBS CEO Les Moonves' prediction last week of a “substantially higher” 2016 upfront ad-selling season, Greenfield said Moonves “appears to be in full-on denial." The analyst cited a comment from CBS Chief Operating Officer Joe Ianniello on an earnings call last week, where Ianniello said the network’s All Access viewing by millennials was a “really good promotional vehicle for the catch-up,” before “they start watching back at the network.” TV network executives “keep hoping an improved TV Everywhere product can help solve their live, linear ratings problem,” Greenfield said. “Forcing consumers to watch heavy, unskippable and often repetitive ad loads is only going to push consumers even faster toward binge viewing on ad-free platforms such as Netflix, Amazon and Hulu (in addition to HBO Now, Showtime and Starz).”