More than half of American adults now stream ad-supported content, including those who subscriber to both audio and video premium streaming services. That's the finding of a collaborative study conducted by Omnicom Media Group, Edison Research and Pandora, which found 54% of American adults stream ad-supported audio, while 79% stream ad-supported video content.

Slightly more than half of ad execs say they have modified their normal advertising and media-buying plans this fall due to the presence of heavy political ad clutter. About a third of the executives -- both advertisers and agency media buyers -- told ad industry researcher Advertiser Perceptions they are "holding back" their media buys to avoid competing with or losing share of mind due to the heavy political ad cycle.

Ninety-four percent of active video pirates would switch to a legal method of accessing content, some even if it costs more. That's one of the top findings from the piracy portion of Hub Entertainment Research's new "Privacy + Piracy" report. The report, which is based on a survey of 2,500 U.S. consumers fielded in late August and early September, found 52% of active pirates would only switch to a legal means, only if it cost the same or less than what they are paying now, but 42% would be wiling to pay more.

On the heels of an IPG Mediabrands study revealing the reluctance American consumers have about sharing various forms of their personal data in order to receive more personalized advertising, Hub Entertainment Research has released a similar insight affirming that, but it depends on the level of "willingness" they are asked about.

A number of recent studies, including recent Wall Street analysts' reports, indicate OTT has been a major beneficiary of shifting media mixes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Preliminary findings from Borrell's annual local ad agency report indicate the budgets are coming primarily from conventional TV.

A new joint study completed by IPG's Magna and IPG Media Lab units indicates a measurable improvement in advertising effectiveness when ads re personalized, but it also found consumer have a high standard for the kind of personal data they believe are worth the trade-off, especially their geographic location, and demos, which actually generated negative rates of appropriateness.

The business optimism of global marketers has improved considerably over the past few months, according to the fourth COVID-19 pandemic tracking study conducted by the Word Federation of Advertisers. While the net sentiment for the current business environment, as well as expectations for the next six months, remains negative its begun stabilizing from just three months earlier, according to the WFA's just-released "Crises Response" report.

A new analysis of 2020 political ad spending shows it is approaching a record $11 billion. The analysis from the Center for Responsive Politics, projects 2020 will total $10.8 billion, a 66% increase over 2016, and more than twice as much as was spent just 16 years ago. According to an analysis published by Bloomberg, the Democratic party is outspending Republicans by about a third this year.

Three weeks into the new NFL season, the erosion of ratings has abated considerably, thanks in large part to the inclusion of out-of-home viewing audiences. According to a UBS analysis of Nielsen data, weeks 1, 2 and 3 were down 9%, 6% and 2%, respectively. But if Nielsen's inclusion his season of out-of-home audiences are factored out of the equation, the first three weeks would have eroded 16%, 13% and 9%, respectively.

An analysis of actual ad spending trends during the second and third quarters indicates most marketers are firmly in rebound, but the biggest gains are occurring among the biggest companies. The analysis, published by Allocadia, is based on spending data from 50 of its customers, and shows that the very biggest -- companies $5 billion on greater -- saw the steepest sequential declines in the second quarter, when the pandemic hit, but also the biggest gains in the third quarter, when the ad economy began to rebound.