Advertisers can now access direct, fee-free paths for both open-market and deal-based CTV transactions

Viant Technology Inc. a provider of CTV and AI-powered programmatic advertising solutions, has announced an expansion of Direct Access, its flagship Supply Path Optimization (SPO) offering. The expanded solution gives advertisers more direct and cost-efficient access to premium CTV inventory across major publishers.

The latest update introduces support for deal-based buying, allowing advertisers to execute Programmatic Guaranteed and Private Marketplace (PMP) deals alongside open-market purchases. With this expansion, Direct Access is designed to support a broader range of campaign requirements.

The service is now available across major publishers representing 94% of programmatic demand, according to Jounce Media.

The expansion comes as connected TV continues to gain ground against traditional linear television. According to eMarketer forecasts, U.S. CTV upfront advertising spending is expected to surpass primetime linear TV upfront spending in 2026 for the first time.

As brands face increasing challenges and costs in traditional performance channels, CTV is becoming an increasingly important way to reach new audiences and generate incremental demand. Viant says Direct Access is designed to support this shift by providing advertisers with a more transparent and efficient route to premium CTV inventory.

“Premium content deserves a supply path built for its value. Direct Access with Viant has given us a more efficient path to advertiser demand and real transparency into how our inventory performs. Extending that model to deals lets us bring those same benefits to more advertisers, at scale, without adding friction,” said Amy Leifer, Chief Advertising Sales Officer at DIRECTV Advertising.

Supporting Open-Market and Private Deals

Direct Access has traditionally enabled advertisers to purchase open-market CTV inventory through a direct, fee-free supply path. Viant is now extending that model to Private Marketplace and Programmatic Guaranteed deals.

The expanded offering currently supports deals across FreeWheel, Magnite’s SpringServe, Publica and custom oRTB integrations.

Unlike conventional exchange-based transactions, Direct Access does not charge buyers or sellers a setup or execution fee for deals. Viant says this allows a larger portion of an advertiser’s media budget to be directed toward actual media rather than transaction costs.

“As a performance-driven brand, every dollar we spend on CTV needs to work harder. Direct Access has let us put more of our budget into working media instead of transaction fees, and the transparency into where our inventory comes from has made it easier to see which impressions are actually driving results,” said Courtney Manning, Senior Manager, Brand Media at WHOOP.

“That combination, efficiency and transparency, is exactly what we look for in a media partner,” Manning added.

Expanding Viant’s Publisher Solutions

Direct Access is one of four core offerings within Viant Publisher Solutions, alongside SupplyIQ, Household ID and IRIS Content ID.

Together, these solutions are designed to give publishers greater visibility into supply quality and monetization while helping advertisers access higher-quality and more addressable inventory.

When combined with attention signals, the capabilities can also help advertisers assess not only whether audiences were exposed to an ad, but also the quality of that exposure.

Viant’s supply quality scoring, which is verified by Jounce Media, provides advertisers with additional visibility into where their media investments are going and how inventory performs.

“Every direct connection between an advertiser and a publisher strengthens the signal quality that drives the entire performance flywheel,” said Richie Hyden, SVP, Supply & CTV at Viant Technology.

“By extending Direct Access to support deals, we’re closing the gap for how advertisers actually transact CTV, via deals. Publishers receive increased yield from their direct buys, advertisers see an increase in working media and delivered outcomes, and that shared value is exactly what Viant Publisher Solutions was built to create,” Hyden added.

The Direct Access expansion is the second announcement Viant has made as part of its Publisher Solutions initiative. Viant Publisher Solutions is currently available to the company’s partners at no cost.