Spark Awards insight: 3 media shifts shaping 2027

The media platforms of 2027 may not look much like what we think media to be at all. It could be a retailer with a trove of first-party data. A streaming platform selling advertising alongside entertainment. A creator with millions of followers. A connected TV manufacturer turning the home screen into an ad surface. Or a superapp reaching consumers from discovery through to transaction.

This comes as advertisers are asking media owners to do more than deliver reach. They want better data, more precise targeting, stronger content and clearer links between media spend and business results.

For traditional publishers, broadcasters and out-of-home operators, competition is no longer limited to other media companies. It is coming from platforms, retailers, technology companies, creators and businesses that have built direct relationships with consumers.

As the industry heads into 2027, five shifts are set to shape that next phase.

1. The media owner is getting harder to define

The traditional media owner used to be relatively easy to spot: Publishers, broadcasters, radio stations and out-of-home operators sold access to audiences through established channels.

That list has become considerably longer.

Retailers have built media networks around their first-party customer data. eCommerce platforms such as Shopee and Lazada have long expanded their advertising and affiliate ecosystems, while TikTok Shop has brought together entertainment, creators and commerce in one environment.

Streaming platforms such as Netflix, who long rejected the notion of ads, have also in recent years delved into the advertising businesses. Social platforms are now a go to search platform, alongside being seen as entertainment destinations and shopping channels.

Even the devices consumers use to access content are becoming part of the media mix.

LG, for example, has turned the connected TV interface into an advertising opportunity through LG Ads Solutions, while Grab can connect brands with consumers across its app and physical touchpoints.

2. Finding new moments

Today the competition is for attention is no longer against a company who offers similar products as yours, but rather anyone and everyone capturing eyeballs. As such brands are looking for new avenues to appear in the lives of consumers.

Take the television home screen. Before a viewer opens Netflix, YouTube or another streaming service, the connected TV interface can already be serving recommendations and advertising. LG Ads Solutions has identified that first-on-screen moment as another opportunity for brands to reach viewers.

The same principle can be seen in Grab's ecosystem. Someone opening the app to book a ride, find dinner or order groceries is already in a specific mindset and that creates opportunities for brands to become part of the experience rather than simply appear beside it.

The battleground stretches well beyond screens, too. Short-form video, gaming, podcasts, creator content, streaming and social feeds are all competing for the same finite resource: time.

That makes integrating rather than interrupting increasingly important. Kantar’s “Media Reactions 2025” found that 66% of consumers believe brands are getting better at integrating advertising across campaigns, while its LIFT+ database found that 45% of a campaign’s impact on brand KPIs comes from the synergy between multiple channels.

For media owners, the challenge in 2027 will be understanding not just how many people they can reach, but where their audiences are willing to spend their attention and what new ways to hook them in. 

3. Performance matters, but so does the brand

Performance marketing is nothing new and today advancements in technology can impact how precisely media can be measured.

Clicks, conversions and purchases offer valuable signals, but they do not tell the whole story. A campaign can drive action today without giving people a reason to remember the brand tomorrow.

As media becomes more measurable, the pressure to prove results will only grow. But marketers should not forget memorability. As such, the need to create work that stands out, builds familiarity and leaves an impression beyond the moment of exposure will become vital.

For media owners, the opportunity is to offer more than efficient reach or measurable outcomes. It is to create spaces where brands can connect with audiences through distinctive content, meaningful experiences and ideas that stay with them.

A bigger media ecosystem needs a bigger definition of excellence

The changes underway point to a media landscape that is increasingly difficult to divide neatly into channels. For advertisers, that creates more ways to reach consumers. For media owners, it creates a much bigger field of competition.

It also raises the bar for what counts as media excellence. That is the landscape the Spark Awards for Media Excellence 2027 aims to recognise across three tracks: Media Channels, Platforms & Networks; Media Strategy & Content; and Technology.

As the boundaries around media continue to shift, the work defining what comes next will not necessarily come from the companies that have traditionally called themselves media owners.

It may come from whoever finds a new way to connect audiences, content, technology and commerce.

Check out the Spark Awards 2027. Submit your entries by 16 October 2026.