Gaming, Streaming & Emerging Ad Channels

Two distinct but related stories pushed gaming and streaming to the forefront of channel strategy conversations this week. IAB's Michael Arzt delivered a pointed critique of how advertisers continue to undervalue gaming as an ad environment, arguing the industry's outdated perception of the channel as a niche youth medium is leaving significant reach and engagement on the table — particularly as the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics approaches and gaming's cultural centrality becomes impossible to ignore. On the streaming side, Disney executives used the D23 conference to articulate a multi-pronged growth strategy anchored in sports rights, local-language content, vertical media formats, and emerging ad formats — a roadmap that positions Disney+ and ESPN as premium advertising environments with differentiated inventory. Disney's simultaneous expansion into adjacent content formats, including a Kingdom Hearts anime series and a Webtoon romantasy partnership, reflects a broader strategy of IP monetization across every available screen and platform. For advertisers, the message from both stories is consistent: the definition of premium video and interactive inventory is expanding rapidly, and channel planning frameworks built even two years ago may already be obsolete.