Walmart-Vibe.co and Pinterest-TVScientific Deals Mark CTV's Push Into Performance Ads

August 28, 2026 · mediapost.com

Walmart's acquisition of Vibe.co last week followed Pinterest's purchase of TVScientific late last year, two M&A deals MediaPost's Research Intelligencer column points to as proof that performance advertising has moved from CTV's fringe to its center. Ad platforms built by device makers including Vizio, LG and Samsung, alongside operating system providers Roku, Apple and Google, now give performance-focused buyers targeting, measurement and optimization tools that resemble digital ad systems such as Meta's, letting them buy TV inventory without learning legacy linear workflows, spend minimums or seller relationships.

Linear TV, spanning broadcast, cable and satellite, still holds more than 80% of TV ad inventory even as CTV grows, and the column argues that automated, data-driven buying will extend from CTV into that underused linear pool next. Linear spots are priced well below CTV inventory, and once agentic and programmatic platforms make linear interchangeable with CTV buying, that price gap is likely to pull more performance dollars toward the cheaper, larger linear pool.