Ads in motion: What mobile-first viewers expect in 2025

Smartphones dominate how people consume video streaming content, and we’re no longer witnessing a mobile-first shift: we’re in it. For platforms and advertisers, the challenge isn’t whether ads belong on mobile – it’s how to make them feel natural, relevant, and welcome within today’s fast, fragmented viewing behaviours.

At Candyspace, we’re focused on how audience expectations are changing and what streaming providers can do to stay ahead. In 2025, mobile-first ad experiences need to work harder, load faster, and feel more human. Here’s where attention is shifting and what it means for those designing in-stream advertising.

The first few seconds matter more than ever

Mobile viewers decide within 3–5 seconds whether to keep watching or move on. Ads need to earn their place fast. This isn’t about cutting down 30-second TV spots, it’s about opening strong, delivering early value, and keeping pace with the surrounding content.

This year’s IAB NewFronts made that point loud and clear. Meta, TikTok, and Google all showcased tools that help brands build punchier, more relevant mobile ads using AI, enabling quick turnaround and better contextual matching.

If an ad feels irrelevant or slow to get to the point, it’s not just skipped its resented.

2. Mobile is vertical, silent, and scrollable – your ads should be too

Over 70% of mobile video is consumed in portrait mode, often with the sound off. That means horizontal video, complex dialogue, or ads without captions simply don’t land.

The best mobile ads today mimic native content – Stories, Reels, Shorts with a visual-first, vertical format that integrates into the flow of the app. Captions, text overlays, and bold visual cues are no longer optional; they’re fundamental to mobile ad delivery.

3. Personalisation drives results – but trust is fragile

Mobile users respond well to ads that feel relevant and tailored to their behaviour, location, or preferences, but there’s a fine line between helpful and invasive. Ads that feel over-personalised or overly frequent erode trust quickly.

The industry is responding by giving users more control: clearer targeting disclosures, feedback buttons, and skip options are becoming the norm. Platforms that handle personalisation transparently and allow users to shape their experience are building better long-term engagement.

4. Speed, stability, and experience make or break mobile ads

Mobile users expect instant, smooth experiences and poorly performing ads can derail that completely. If an ad lags, buffers, or causes a playback glitch, users won’t just abandon the content, they may leave the app altogether.

That’s why more streaming platforms are adopting Dynamic Ad Insertion (DAI), stitching ads into the content at server level to prevent jarring transitions and improve load times.

Ad formats also need to reflect the length of the content. On short-form video, 6-second bumpers or skippable ads that offer fast interaction perform best. If your ad takes longer to watch than the content itself, you’ve already lost.

5. Interactivity and commerce are transforming mobile ads

This year, we’ve seen a rapid rise in interactive, shoppable, and rewarded ad formats. Viewers don’t just want to watch, they want to engage, swipe, tap, or buy:

• Shoppable video ads are now mainstream on platforms like TikTok and Instagram, and they’re delivering higher conversion rates particularly in influencer-led content.
  
  
• Rewarded ads long used in mobile gaming are expanding into entertainment platforms, letting users opt in for perks or ad-free viewing in exchange for their attention.
  
  
• Gamified ad units with polls, sliders, and tap to reveal features are becoming more common across social and OTT platforms.
  
  
• Multi-part ad sequences delivered over time or across touchpoints are helping brands tell stories without overwhelming users.
  
  

The shift is clear: viewers don’t just want to be shown, they want to be part of the story.

6. AI is reshaping creative strategy

Behind the scenes, AI is playing an increasingly important role. Platforms like AppLovin and Meta are now using machine learning to dynamically generate or optimise mobile creatives adjusting visuals and messaging in real time based on performance.

Meanwhile, broadcasters are experimenting with self-serve, AI-generated ad platforms. In the UK, Channel 4 recently announced plans to offer AI-created ads to smaller advertisers giving them access to premium streaming inventory without big production budgets.

This democratisation of creative tools is lowering the barrier to entry and raising the bar for relevance and performance.

7. Platforms are prioritising better ad experiences

Even platforms that historically resisted ads are leaning in, but on their own terms. For example, Discord has begun testing mobile video ads in the form of opt-in quests where users receive rewards for watching branded content.

These models reflect a new balance: one where viewers choose to engage, and brands reward that attention. For streaming platforms, the lesson is to simply lean into ad formats that feel collaborative, not coercive.

The mobile mindset is now the default

Mobile-first users are fast, curious, and unforgiving of bad experiences, but they’re not anti-ad: they’re anti-interruption. They’re open to brand messages that respect their time, align with the content, and give them something in return.

For streaming platforms, winning in mobile advertising means thinking more like a content creator and less like a broadcaster. It’s about designing ad experiences that fit the real-world behaviours of viewers and giving them reasons to engage, not just endure.

In 2025, that’s not just best practice, it's the baseline.