Canadian streaming viewers are spending significant amounts of time deciding what to watch, creating a new opening for advertisers to make CTV experiences more useful rather than simply adding another interruption.
Roku’s seventh annual Video on Demand (VOD) Evolution 2027 study found that Canadian streamers spend an average of 13 minutes searching for something to watch. Among daily streaming viewers, that can amount to almost 80 hours a year. The research surveyed more than 2,000 Canadian viewers and found that some respondents spend as much as 32 minutes searching, rising to 47 minutes among viewers under 35.
The study also points to the scale of the Canadian streaming audience. Roku reports that 27 million Canadian adults watch streaming services, while 88% of Canadian TV viewers stream. Viewers use an average of 3.6 streaming services, contributing to a fragmented content-discovery experience. Six in 10 respondents said they cannot always identify which app carries the program they want.
Content Discovery Becomes a CTV Advertising Opportunity
For advertisers, the findings suggest that CTV inventory is increasingly connected to the broader viewing journey, not just the commercial break.
Roku found that 65% of respondents consider advertising useful when it helps them find shows, movies or live television. Seven in 10 streamers said reminder advertising can help them find content, while roughly three-quarters said they are more concerned with finding the content they want than which streaming service provides it.
That creates space for formats that combine advertising with navigation, recommendations and content discovery. Roku says its home-screen experiences, including Roku Zones and Curated Playlists, can give brands sponsored destinations around specific themes.
The company cited a previous Halloween campaign involving Reese’s and Kit Kat, which generated 700,000 visits to a Roku collection, with households spending an average of 96 minutes streaming the collection. Those figures are company-reported campaign results rather than independent industry benchmarks.
Interactive CTV Moves Beyond Video Completion
The research also highlights growing interest in measurable actions from the television screen. Roku reports that 84% of Canadian streamers watch ad-supported streaming services each month, spending almost 12 hours a week with streaming content that includes advertising.
Interactive formats are another part of that shift. According to the study, 43% of respondents have ordered directly through TV, 48% have downloaded or subscribed to a streaming service during a video ad, and 42% have purchased a product featured in a program.
Roku also reports that 67% of streamers take some measurable action after seeing TV advertising. These actions include searching for additional information, visiting a brand website, using maps to locate a retailer and scanning QR codes.
The findings align with a broader evolution in Canada’s CTV infrastructure. IAB Canada describes the market as an increasingly interconnected ecosystem involving streaming applications, ad servers, SSPs, DSPs and data platforms, while recent industry standards work has focused on making CTV formats and programmatic workflows more consistent.
Market Landscape
CTV advertising is increasingly combining television-scale reach with digital targeting, interaction and measurement. IAB Canada reported that Canada’s digital advertising market reached C$21.1 billion in 2025, with video advertising growing 26% as investment expanded in connected television and premium streaming environments.
Roku’s research indicates that content discovery itself can become part of that advertising environment. For agencies and advertisers, this shifts attention toward formats that connect media exposure with navigation, content engagement and downstream actions.
Strategic Outlook
The challenge for CTV platforms will be balancing commercial opportunities with viewer utility. Ads that help audiences find relevant programming may occupy a different role from conventional interruption-based video, but their effectiveness will still depend on relevance, execution and measurable outcomes.
For advertisers, the emerging opportunity is to treat CTV as an interactive media environment rather than simply a digital replacement for linear television.
Top Insights
- Canadian streamers spend an average of 13 minutes searching for something to watch.
- 84% watch ad-supported streaming services monthly.
- 65% say ads can be useful for discovering TV content.
- 67% take measurable action after seeing TV advertising.
- CTV is increasingly connected to interactive, measurable advertising experiences.
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