CTV Advisory Board: Daniel Knapp on the Future of CTV in Europe
As part of Rakuten TV Enterprise’s CTV Advisory Board series, we spoke with Daniel Knapp about the future of Connected TV in Europe, the evolution of measurement, and the growing role of data, signals, and creativity within the advertising ecosystem.
The Rakuten TV Enterprise CTV Advisory Board brings together leading voices from across the industry to explore the trends and challenges shaping the future of streaming and advertising.
About Daniel Knapp
IAB Europe Chief Economist Daniel Knapp holds a PhD from the London School of Economics and serves on the board of the Institute for European Media Law and the Fondation Medialab. He is also a partner at Colosseum Strategy and co-founder of several analytics and intelligence companies.
Q1: How will the European Connected TV landscape evolve?
Daniel Knapp believes the European CTV market is entering a more mature phase, with global platforms, operating systems, and manufacturers playing an increasingly important role alongside broadcasters.
He also expects greater consolidation across Europe as the industry looks to reduce fragmentation and simplify buying for advertisers.
“CTV is shifting away from being fundamentally just a channel to being part of a broader system that delivers outcomes for
advertisers.”
For Knapp, the future of CTV lies in combining the impact of premium television with the accountability and flexibility of digital advertising.
Q2: What does good CTV measurement look like?
According to Knapp, CTV sits between traditional television and digital media, meaning measurement frameworks will need to support both environments.
While reach and frequency remain essential, he believes the industry must also evolve towards more outcome-based and engagement-focused metrics.
“What’s going to be important is that we are measuring both reach and frequency metrics, but that we’re also starting to measure things like outcome-based engagement metrics.”
As CTV connects more closely with commerce and retail media, flexible measurement will become increasingly important for advertisers.
Q3: Where do data and signals matter most in CTV?
Knapp highlights CTV’s ability to provide more granular audience understanding through behavioural and viewing signals, enabled by the return path of connected devices.
At the same time, he believes supply chain transparency and quality signals will become increasingly important as programmatic CTV continues to grow.
“CTV can really learn from many years of iteration in the digital space to demonstrate the transparency, integrity and quality of its supply chain.”
He also points to the importance of standardised IDs, cohorts, and clean room environments to ensure CTV integrates effectively with the wider advertising ecosystem.
Q4: What excites you most about the future of CTV?
For Knapp, the future of CTV lies in its ability to create new partnerships across publishers, retailers, commerce platforms, and advertisers.
At the same time, he believes the industry has an opportunity to reconnect data with creative impact, using measurement to demonstrate the value of premium big-screen advertising.
“CTV should really leverage the importance of the big screen to impress and make consumers aware of a product.”
As Connected TV continues to mature across Europe, the industry is entering a phase shaped by consolidation, interoperability, and closer integration with the wider advertising ecosystem. For Daniel Knapp, the future of CTV will not be defined by measurement or data alone, but by the ability to combine premium viewing experiences, meaningful outcomes, and creative impact within a more connected media landscape.