• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, May 16, 2016

You may be excited about new program/content choices  everywhere. But what about TV advertising everywhere -- especially the same commercials?

New TV-video program content doesn’t always mean new and different pieces of advertising content. Seen the same State Farm commercial on your TV, tablet, smartphone, VR device? Are you getting tired of all that insurance talk?

Repeated commercial creative has been a problem for all TV-video platforms. Early days on traditional cable networks witnessed multiple airings of the same TV commercial in a TV episode — a problem which can pop up even today, in some cases.

Sure, we have commercial avoidance and ad-blocking technologies. But, as media researchers tell us, much still gets through.

Young TV-video consumers, 18-34, are particularly sensitive. Ad-tech company Unruly says 49% complain the same commercials run again and again and that 84% are likely to mute commercials. All of which may be interesting: Why aren’t those commercials being skipped through on TV, or ad-blocked online in the first place? Unruly says more is coming -- that 93% are considering ad blocking software.

And that’s not all. Many millennials — 43.1% — feel "creeped out" by ads appearing to follow them around the Web.

But we also have grey areas: The same Unruly survey says 23% of those 18-34 are more likely to enjoy ads they find relevant, and 112% are likely to share online ads. So where’s the tipping point?

Lots of media users young and old talk about “trust” when it comes to marketing. For many companies, that can be tough to gain and easy to lose. Is this where content marketing comes in? Or can this make things worse?

Finding out, for example, that Uber was behind a story talking about lower carbon emissions from fewer automobile owners, would carry a thoughtful message. How can one not agree with an idea keeping the earth potentially more green?

And if that message is somehow repeated too much on every screen you look? Well, that will drive you... crazy.