• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, Yesterday

Linear TV may have its drawbacks -- including continuing viewing declines -- but it still has some staying power, according to a study from Circana, a market/research company.

According to a new report from Circana, linear TV isn't as weak as some media buyers might believe -- from a return-on-media investment (ROI) perspective. It is estimated to come in at $0.81 on the dollar -- just slightly lower than digital platforms' ROI of $0.90. 

This typically is the case for brands that spend two to four times the average annual spend level -- around $1 million, especially for large sporting events.

Circana adds that those that do spend a larger percentage of their budgets on linear TV would find it difficult to shift to an all-digital strategy and get the same ROI.

For connected TV (CTV) the positives include that its return-on-advertising spend is 15% higher than linear TV and 21% more than short-form videos.

The report recommends moving slowly to shifting money -- around 20% of budgets -- to CTV from linear, and then moving to a 40% budget lift, after analyzing improving performance results.

We should factor in in that CTV is also gaining more middle-aged audience viewers. September 2025 Circana’s research of says there is most notable growth in subscription intention from consumers ages 35 to 54 with households that earn over $100,000.

Circana projects that by 2030, Gen Z and Millennials will dominate the U.S. population and will drive 60% of retail sales growth.

Those young viewers will also over-index -- anywhere from 150% to 200% -- on new, digitally focused alternatives TV-video sports -- eSports, NCAA, rugby, lacrosse, and soccer.

Young consumers are seeking alternatives to the NFL and NBA, college football and basketball.

Circana is a global data and market research firm created in March 2023 following a merger of IRI (Information Resources, Inc.) and The NPD Group.