If you haven't started on your holiday shopping, you're behind.  According to the latest Basis + GWI Holiday Trends Report, 90% of U.S. gift-givers plan to spend the same or more than last year, even as nearly 70% say they’re sticking to a strict budget. That means advertisers are racing to capture attention early, often, and efficiently.

Connected TV is a smart choice for brands looking to reach deal-driven holiday shoppers. But many advertisers still don’t know where their ads are actually showing up. When it comes to CTV, context and placement quality are everything.

According to Peer39’s CTV Benchmarks Report, 20.8% of CTV impressions across the open exchange were delivered to fake environments like screensavers, white noise apps, or non-streaming placements. In contrast, advertisers using Peer39’s Safe From Fake CTV category saw that number drop to just 0.9%. That is a massive difference in quality and performance, especially during the highest-spending quarter of the year.

 As Ethan Robinson, Senior Sales Director at Peer39, puts it: “During the holiday season, advertisers often lean into biddable CTV just as inventory tightens and CPMs spike — increasing their risk of landing in blind or fake environments. That’s where Peer39 steps in. We help partners pre-validate inventory before the bid, protecting both budgets and performance by ensuring ads run in real, high-quality environments.”

The holiday timeline is getting longer and more fragmented

The same Basis report highlights how shoppers are stretching out the season:

• 66% are shopping early to avoid shipping delays
• 63% want to finish shopping quickly
• 57% buy throughout the year to catch deals

Your ads now need to perform across a longer window with higher intent, and also with greater risk of waste.

Peer39’s approach to protecting your holiday spend

Peer39 offers advertisers three layers of protection to improve performance and minimize wasted impressions:

• Safe From Fake CTV filters out non-streaming inventory before the bid is placed
• Verified Content & Channels ensure placements happen in real CTV environments
• Suitability Filters protect your message from emotionally or contextually mismatched content
• Program-Level Controls enable smarter and more precise targeting by filtering at the individual show level and not just the app or channel level. This allows advertisers to avoid irrelevant or misaligned content without overblocking, ensuring ads appear in relevant, high-quality programming that aligns with brand goals

Real-time analytics are available at no extra cost, helping to verify where your ads appear and optimize performance mid-flight. This is critical during the fast-moving holiday season.

Holiday shoppers want value, but they also expect relevance

From the Basis + GWI report:

• 91% of holiday shoppers want deal-driven ads
• 72% would scan a QR code from their TV
• 51% say sales will determine their gift choices

With such a responsive audience, every impression matters. Poor placement doesn’t just waste your budget, it can cause your brand to miss the moment entirely.

Final Thoughts: Don’t let your CTV budget disappear

Holiday 2025 is on track to set records for CTV ad spend. If you’re not actively managing placement quality, nearly one in five impressions could land in environments that no one sees such as mobile, screen savers, or games.

Peer39 helps you protect media investments, reduce waste, and drive stronger outcomes before your campaign ever launches.

👉 Next in our series:
Why Context Wins in Holiday 2025 CTV Campaigns