The 13th HbbTV Symposium and Awards, held in Istanbul, highlighted the increasing international adoption of the HbbTV standard, particularly in Europe, Turkey, and the broader MENA region. The event, a joint effort by the HbbTV Association and Turkish addressable advertising solutions provider TVekstra, occurred on November 12-13 and attracted a highly international audience.
The program featured broadcasters, platform operators, manufacturers, ad-tech providers, researchers, and service companies, engaging in keynotes, panels, and presentations. Discussions centered around the fragmentation of the Connected TV (CTV) landscape – now influenced by over a dozen operating systems – and the crucial role of HbbTV and DVB-I in enabling scalable services across hybrid and IP-only environments. Other key topics included FAST Channels, analytics, audience measurement, and consent management.
Turkey's dynamic ecosystem was a focal point, showcasing robust HbbTV deployments, advanced ad-tech capabilities, and a growing community of CTV innovators. Across the MENA region, HbbTV-enabled addressable TV now reaches 34 million households, complementing the more than 100 million homes in Europe.
"This was probably our best Symposium yet – exceptional in its setting, content, engagement and the many new participants it attracted," said HbbTV Chair Vincent Grivet. "The standard now goes well beyond the red button into advertising, measurement, analytics and consent solutions. In today’s highly fragmented CTV environment, HbbTV provides a unifying framework that allows a single application to run reliably across diverse operating systems and devices, reducing complexity, saving time and costs while improving efficiency."
TVekstra CEO Merve Eraslanoğlu commented on the significance of the Istanbul venue, reflecting the region’s rapid CTV evolution. "For TVekstra, the event underscored the rising demand for transparent, scalable and privacy-first advertising solutions that work reliably across diverse platforms and devices. With millions of households now reachable and strong momentum from broadcasters and advertisers alike, the market is primed for meaningful transformation. We were proud to co-host an event that fostered collaboration, aligned industry expectations and set the foundation for the next stage of CTV growth in the region."
The 8th HbbTV Awards celebrated innovation across the ecosystem, recognizing winners in advertising, accessibility, technology, and content discovery. Spain’s CCMA – 3Cat received awards for both accessibility and AI-driven content discovery, while UK-based Everyone TV was acknowledged for its hybrid account-linking platform. UK-based BCi Digital won the technology tool category for its advanced addressable advertising suite, and Turkey’s TVekstra won the advertising innovation award for an interactive sports-linked campaign. CCMA – 3Cat was also named Newcomer of the Year for its strong accessibility work and early application of generative AI techniques.
At the conclusion of the event, Vincent Grivet announced that the 14th HbbTV Symposium and Awards will be held in Spain in 2026. Presentations, the brochure, speaker details, and the picture gallery are available on the event website.