Netflix is still a relative newcomer to the upfronts. The streamer has only participated in the springtime pitchfest since it obtained ad inventory to sell, and it didn’t get that inventory until it launched its ad-supported tier in November 2022.
Early on, Netflix’s ad tier encountered speed bumps on its way to viability. But two years after the streamer’s first upfront presentation, its commercial space is looking a lot more grown-up. Its 2025 upfronts pitch included details about new ad types, measurement updates for brands and agencies, and previews of upcoming shows, movies, and live events.
The epicenter of Netflix’s advertising operation is a newly-launched destination that has been dubbed the Netflix Ad Suite. That platform, currently available in the U.S. and Canada, offers a variety of analytical options. Advertisers can import first-party data while also working with approved third-party data partners like Experian and Acxiom. Netflix also announced new measurement tools, including one that connects viewer behaviors to brand perceptions.
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Amy Reinhard, Netflix’s President of Advertising, argued that her platform offers access to a tapped-in audience. “When you compare us to our competitors, attention starts much higher and ends much higher,” Reinhard said. “And even more impressive, members pay as much attention to mid-roll ads as they do to the shows and the movies themselves.”
To leverage that collective attention, Netflix is buying into one of the main themes of this year’s upfronts season: AI-powered placements that connect brands to pivotal moments in specific properties. Reinhard talked about “interactive midroll and pause formats” that will combine overlays, calls to action, second screen buttons, and more to pair advertisers with the consumers that best match their goals.
Of course, even the best ad products are meaningless without a strong lineup of programming on which those tools can be applied. Netflix is bringing back some of its biggest hits, including Wednesday and Stranger Things. There isn’t a big creator presence among the streamer’s upcoming originals, but the slate does include a nod to one influencer spectacle: Amanda Serrano and Katie Taylor, who contested a thrilling undercard before last November’s Jake Paul-Mike Tyson fight, will face off once again on July 11.
