2026 Telecommunications Advertising Outlook

How telecom marketers are reallocating spend, embracing AI, and closing the orchestration gap

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AI & DIGITAL CHANNELS LEAD TELECOM SPEND

AI media, digital video, and CTV drive planned investment increases

Investment is shifting toward emerging and digital-first channels, led by AI media (86% increase) alongside strong growth across digital display/video (71%), CTV (67%), and OOH/DOOH (67%). Most of these environments offer stronger targeting and performance visibility as telecom brands compete for subscriber growth and retention. Meanwhile, spend continues to decline across print, radio, and parts of linear TV as budgets move toward more flexible, measurable engagement channels.

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AI & STREAMING SHAPE CONSUMER BEHAVIOR

AI-powered discovery and streaming platforms shape telecom audiences

Generative AI (86%) and CTV/streaming (71%) stand out as the most important consumer trends, underscoring how audiences increasingly discover and engage with brands through AI-assisted and streaming environments. Social video and privacy concerns (29% each) also influence engagement strategies, as telecom marketers work to meet consumers across content environments where entertainment and commerce intersect.

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BRAND & PERFORMANCE INVESTMENTS LEAD PRIORITIES

Marketers balance brand growth with performance outcomes

Brand advertising and performance-driven media rank equally as top priorities, with 71% citing both as critical investments. This balance reflects the need to drive new customer acquisition while maintaining strong brand visibility in competitive markets. Rising emphasis on AI, automation, and demand generation (43% each) highlights growing focus on improving efficiency while scaling campaigns across channels.

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AI SUPPORTS CREATIVE & CAMPAIGN EXECUTION

AI adoption centers on content production and orchestration

Telecom marketers most frequently use AI to support creative development (57%) and data analysis (43%), helping teams accelerate content production and campaign planning. Adoption is also expanding into campaign orchestration and personalization (29% each) as organizations look to deliver more tailored messaging and operate efficiently across a growing, complex media mix.

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DATA & CONNECTIVITY LIMIT AI EXPANSION

Data quality and system connectivity remain top barriers

Scaling AI continues to be constrained by data quality and access challenges (57%), alongside difficulty connecting insights across systems and limited internal expertise (43% each). Integration and compliance concerns (29% each) further slow broader deployment, making system interoperability and stronger internal capabilities critical for unlocking AI’s full marketing potential.

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MEASUREMENT & SYSTEM GAPS DRIVE INDUSTRY CONCERNS

Cross-channel complexity and interoperability challenge performance

Key challenges include cross-channel measurement complexity, platform fragmentation, and tech stack interoperability gaps (43% each). Telecom marketing teams also struggle to scale advanced creative effectively across channels (43%), making it harder to maintain consistent performance and customer experiences as campaigns span streaming, digital, and emerging AI environments.

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ORCHESTRATION IMPORTANCE VARIES ACROSS ORGANIZATIONS

Unified execution across systems is under consideration for telecom marketers

Views on orchestration vary widely, with 29% calling it extremely important, 29% somewhat important, and 29% unsure, reflecting different stages of system maturity. As campaigns expand across AI-driven, streaming, and digital environments, stronger orchestration strategies will become increasingly important for connecting data, creative, and activation across channels.

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The Telecommunications Takeaway

Telecom marketing in 2026 is defined by AI-led investment, performance-driven execution, and rising operational complexity. Success will depend on balancing innovation while orchestrating data, media, and creative systems to deliver consistent and competitive consumer-first experiences.

For more insights across all verticals, download Mediaocean’s 2026 Advertising Outlook Report.

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