LG eyes $717M in US CTV ad sales this year as Samsung TV Plus tops 100M users

August 21, 2026 · AdIndex

Alphonso founder Ashish Chordia frames the shift bluntly: TV makers are turning from hardware companies into media platform businesses that combine operating systems, advertising and data, he told Chosun. LG Ad Solutions, the arm Alphonso runs on LG Electronics' behalf, grew first-half sales roughly 50% year over year, putting LG on track for over $717 million in US CTV ad revenue this year and near $850 million annualized, delivered through the webOS home screen. Samsung Electronics has built a parallel business around Samsung TV Plus, its free ad-supported channel service, which passed 100 million monthly active users this year after total viewing time rose 25% last year. In March, Samsung and Amazon added a feature that lets viewers put advertised products straight into an Amazon cart from the TV screen.

Ad inventory now stretches past the living room television, and buyers who plan CTV around app-based streaming alone will under-count reach as ad slots spread to car dashboards, smart speakers and eventually kitchen appliances. eMarketer expects the US CTV ad market to grow from about $38 billion this year to $46.9 billion by 2028, overtaking traditional TV advertising, so budgets moving into these platforms will keep compounding. Samsung's Family Hub refrigerator ads show the limits of that expansion: after backlash from customers, the Wall Street Journal noted in March that shoppers tolerate ads on phones as the price of connectivity while still expecting kitchens to stay ad-free, and Samsung now walks users through turning the fridge ads off in settings. Planners should track which of these newer surfaces actually converts before committing spend.