Nielsen’s data and content arm, Gracenote, has introduced a new connected TV advertising platform designed to give brands greater control, accuracy and transparency in how they target viewers.

The launch of Gracenote Content Connect is aimed at strengthening CTV ad planning, buying and reporting by offering standardized, program-level metadata to agencies, brands, SSPs and DSPs.

According to a Gracenote press release, the platform opens direct access to the company’s program-level content data—a resource long regarded as the industry benchmark for powering entertainment search and discovery. By making this metadata widely usable across ad-tech partners, Gracenote aims to help advertisers reach viewers with sharper contextual relevance while improving campaign outcomes.

The platform enables buyers to work in multiple ways depending on their workflow. They can directly use Content Connect to build private marketplace (PMP) or programmatic guaranteed (PG) deals, or rely on partner SSPs and DSPs to activate and manage deals on their behalf. Gracenote says this flexibility is intended to simplify the program-level targeting process, regardless of the buyer’s existing tools or preferences.

Content Connect is powered by Gracenote’s proprietary content ID graph, a structured system built on standardized program metadata and unique identifiers. By linking content through these identifiers, the platform ensures ad buyers and sellers speak the same language—an increasingly important need as popular shows appear across multiple CTV services and FAST channels. With visibility into signals such as genre, mood, rating and other contextual cues, advertisers can bid on inventory with a clearer picture of the programming environment in which their ads will appear.

Kanishk Prasad, VP of Product at Gracenote, said the new platform aims to bring more transparency and control to CTV buying, while still offering the scale advertisers require. He noted that Gracenote data has long been considered the “gold standard” for entertainment metadata, and extending its use into program-level advertising decisions is a natural progression for the company.

By enabling program-specific targeting, the platform promises enhanced brand safety, improved compliance, and more relevant ad placements—an area of growing importance as CTV ad spending continues to surge globally. The company highlighted that Content Connect will allow buyers to maintain privacy-compliant targeting while ensuring ads align with appropriate content environments.

Gracenote’s metadata and unique identifiers (TMS IDs) already underpin search, discovery and personalization systems for major publishers and streaming platforms. With the introduction of Content Connect, the company is extending those capabilities into the advertising ecosystem, offering a bridge between content intelligence and ad decisioning.

Gracenote will preview the Content Connect platform by appointment at CES 2026, scheduled from January 6 to 8.