Sky, ITV, and Channel 4 have partnered to launch a new advertising marketplace. The update is designed to enable businesses to gain broad access to premium streaming ad space in the UK. The goal is to offer advertisers, especially SMEs, a unified route to run campaigns across all three broadcasters’ on-demand and streaming platforms.

The new marketplace will be powered by Comcast’s Universal Ads platform and FreeWheel’s technology. It is set to launch in 2026. According to Channel 4, the solution will combine the addressable ad inventory of Sky, ITV, and Channel 4 into a single biddable platform for the first time. This means advertisers will no longer need to negotiate separate deals or use multiple platforms to reach viewers across the three services.

A self-serve platform aimed at SMEs

According to the broadcasters, the unified offering is designed to lower the barrier to entry for SMEs that traditionally rely on platforms like Google and Facebook to run their ads. Instead of going through agencies or navigating complex bookings, businesses will be able to launch TV-style ads through a simplified self-serve model, similar to how they currently advertise on social media.

“This opens up TV advertising to new brands,” said Priya Dogra, Chief Advertising, Group Data and New Revenue Officer at Sky. “We also want to simplify TV trading for established brands and agencies and look forward to exploring potential opportunities with ITV and Channel 4 to use Planet V.”

A direct response to big tech dominance

The UK digital ad market is currently worth around £45 billion, with Google and Meta taking about two-thirds of the spend, according to The Guardian. Much of that spending comes from the long tail of small and mid-sized businesses. These SMEs are often priced out of traditional TV campaigns, leading them to invest in digital platforms where tools and targeting are more accessible.

This dominance has put pressure on traditional broadcasters to rethink their advertising approach. By adopting a similar pricing and booking model, the broadcasters want to recapture some of that SME ad spend and bring it back to TV.

Comcast Advertising’s International Managing Director, Thomas Bremond, said the collaboration shows the industry’s commitment to using technology and data to improve access and performance for TV advertising.

With the streaming landscape more competitive than ever, especially as platforms like Netflix and Disney+ introduce ad-supported tiers, traditional broadcasters see this partnership as a necessary evolution. It could reinvigorate their position in a market that has been steadily drifting toward digital.

Simplified solutions for agencies too

Although the new system is designed to appeal to SMEs with its self-serve approach, the broadcasters are also working on improvements for agencies. Talks are underway to introduce a joint buying solution built around ITV’s Planet V platform, which many agencies already use. The aim is to create a more unified way for agencies to plan and run addressable campaigns across all three platforms without managing each one separately.

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