The lines between streaming, shopping, and storytelling have blurred. Travelers aren’t just sitting back to watch — they’re actively searching, comparing, and buying across devices, including their smart TVs. What was once a passive viewing experience has transformed into a highly interactive, multi-purpose platform. As Connected TV (CTV) evolves from a passive streaming screen into a dynamic, interactive hub for live events, video podcasts, short-form content, and shopping experiences — marketers must shift their strategies to keep pace.

Recognizing this shift, Google unveiled major updates to Display & Video 360 (DV360) at its 2025 NewFront event, aiming to better align with today’s dynamic media consumption habits.

What’s Changing: Display & Video 360 Just Got Smarter, Faster, and More Connected

Google has introduced significant enhancements to DV360 focused around three core strategies:

  • Be Where People Are Watching Now

    CTV consumption has grown exponentially, with DV360 now reaching 98% of U.S. CTV households and offering access to over 5 billion hours of monthly ad-supported viewership. Google has expanded partnerships with platforms like Netflix, YouTube, NBCUniversal, Disney+, Spotify, Tubi, and even Roblox, allowing advertisers to show up across blockbuster content, live sports, podcasts, and gaming environments.

    Importantly, DV360 now includes live inventory, enabling advertisers to buy media during real-time events — such as NFL games, live award shows, and major tentpole broadcasts.

    Example for hoteliers: Imagine your resort running ads during the NFL Sunday Ticket on YouTube, reaching travelers booking weekend getaways, or sponsoring short-form travel content on Tubi or Spotify podcasts to inspire summer bookings.

  • Turn Viewers into Buyers, Wherever They Shop

    Google’s newly introduced commerce and retail media solution in DV360 is designed to close the gap between interest and action. By partnering with brands like Costco, United Airlines’ Kinective Media, Intuit, and Regal Cinemas, DV360 now allows brands to target users in real-time during shopping journeys, whether they’re browsing online or walking through a store.

    This integration also extends to YouTube, allowing advertisers to apply commerce signals to YouTube campaigns and even measure performance down to sales generated in physical or digital retail spaces.

    Example for hoteliers: If a traveler books a flight with United, you could follow up with a personalized ad for your city hotel on YouTube, targeting them with early check-in offers or bundled experiences. Or if someone browses travel gear at Costco, you can place a timely ad for your tropical resort’s all-inclusive packages.

  • Generate Tailored Business Results Using Google AI

    Google is integrating generative and predictive AI into the core of DV360. This helps advertisers automate inventory selection, receive real-time optimization suggestions, and instantly generate reports — all while staying aligned with specific business objectives.

    • DV360 now uses Google AI to streamline everything from inventory selection and campaign setup to live optimizations and performance reporting.
    • You can simply describe your campaign goal (e.g., “luxury resort targeting sports fans during live events”) and DV360 will suggest pre-negotiated premium deals, ideal genres, audience segments, and even brand safety settings.
    • You can also ask AI questions like “Which of my line items are underperforming?” or “What’s the ROI on ads targeting mobile users?” — and get instant insights or custom reports.

    Example for hoteliers: Planning a campaign for your beachfront resort during spring break? Just describe your target — “Gen Z travelers, music lovers, and spring break vacationers” — and DV360 will auto-suggest relevant inventory (like short-form videos on YouTube, or live concert streams on Spotify), optimized settings, and targeting options, cutting campaign setup time in half.

What Does It Mean for Hoteliers?

These changes reflect a growing opportunity for hospitality brands to use CTV not just for awareness, but for measurable performance-driven campaigns. Here’s what this means in practical terms:

  1. Expanded Reach with High Engagement: Hotels can now place ads where future guests are actively consuming content — from sports fans watching live games to digital natives streaming podcasts or scrolling through short-form travel content on TV.
  2. Shoppable Travel Experiences: Commerce media allows hotels to reach people with booking intent while they’re researching, comparing, or planning — such as a traveler exploring vacation deals on Costco or checking into a flight via United Airlines.
  3. Personalization at Scale: Google AI in DV360 allows for customized ad experiences by automatically recommending the right platforms, audiences, and messaging strategies based on campaign goals — saving marketers hours of manual setup.
  4. Real-Time Optimization: Campaigns can be fine-tuned in real-time with insights like which room category ad performs better, which platform drives more midweek bookings, or which audience segment responds to early bird deals.

Why this matters: Travel planning is no longer linear. Guests don’t just go from search to booking — they bounce between devices, platforms, and content types. DV360 lets you stay present across that entire journey with consistent messaging and measurable performance.

How Can Hoteliers Act?

  1. Expand Your CTV Media Plan

    Hotels should start incorporating CTV formats across a range of content types — live sports, video podcasts, and short-form video — to capture attention in high-engagement moments. DV360’s curated auction inventory can simplify this with one-click access to premium placements.

    Example: A hotel chain could promote staycation packages during YouTube’s NFL Sunday Ticket broadcasts or appear in Spotify video podcasts targeted at urban millennials.

  2. Leverage Commerce & Retail Media

    Use commerce-based targeting to reach travelers as they shop or plan — and run combined brand + performance campaigns that drive bookings directly. These campaigns can now span across YouTube and retail partner ecosystems.

    Example: Show a resort offer to someone browsing outdoor travel gear on Costco.com or following up after a flight booking on United Airlines.

  3. Use AI to Plan and Optimize Campaigns Faster

    Google AI removes the guesswork in campaign setup. Just enter your goal (e.g., promote weekday bookings for business travelers in Chicago), and DV360 will generate a campaign plan with audience targeting, content genres, and safety settings built in.

    Example: A boutique hotel can use AI to auto-recommend high-performing podcast placements and short-form travel series relevant to their audience.

What’s Coming Up Next

Google has confirmed several powerful AI-powered features coming to DV360 in the coming months, all designed to make campaigns smarter and more efficient for marketers:

  1. Smarter Inventory Selection

    Advertisers will be able to describe their needs (e.g., “high-end CTV content for food lovers”) and DV360 will automatically surface the most relevant inventory, including curated deals.

  2. Easy Campaign Setup

    With just a campaign objective and a few inputs, DV360 will auto-fill the best targeting settings — including audience profiles, brand safety, formats, and creative types — which can then be adjusted as needed.

  3. Quick Help & Improvements

    Built-in AI assistants will allow advertisers to ask questions directly in the interface — such as “Why is this campaign underperforming?” or “Which ad group has the highest conversion rate?” — and get immediate action-oriented insights.

  4. Instant Reports

    Marketers will be able to ask DV360 for specific metrics like “Bookings from YouTube campaigns in April” or “Performance of weekend packages by city” — and instantly receive formatted reports for download or sharing.

Bottom line: The future of travel marketing is real-time, data-driven, and deeply connected to consumer behavior. DV360 is now your one-stop-shop to plan, execute, and optimize CTV and commerce campaigns — all in one place.

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