Wurl and Transmit: How in-stream advertising is creating new revenue opportunities for FAST

The FAST ecosystem has matured rapidly over the last few years. Publishers have successfully launched channels, expanded distribution, and built audiences across streaming platforms worldwide. But, as the market continues to grow, so does the pressure to maximize revenue from every viewing session and support continued investment into premium content.

At the same time, viewer expectations are changing. Audiences are leaning into high-quality content experiences, especially for live programming, while advertisers are looking for new ways to connect with engaged viewers.

For publishers, that creates an important challenge: How do you boost monetization without disrupting the viewer experience? Increasingly, the answer lies beyond the traditional ad break.

A growing opportunity in sports and live programming

The need to balance monetization and viewer experience is becoming increasingly important in live sports – a category that has long been a major driver of advertising spend and is now helping to elevate FAST with more premium content experiences.

Sports programming on FAST has grown 105% year over year globally, creating new opportunities for leagues, broadcasters, and content owners to reach viewers through ad-supported streaming. Across major markets including the US, UK, Germany, Italy, Spain, and France, publishers are investing heavily in sports programming as audiences continue to embrace free streaming experiences.

This growth is creating a significant monetization opportunity. As more sports content moves to FAST, publishers are looking for new ways to generate revenue from highly engaged audiences without compromising the viewing experience that keeps fans coming back.

Not every ad needs to interrupt the action

Historically, some of the most valuable, high-attention moments in streaming have also been the hardest to monetize: a pivotal replay, halftime analysis, a critical moment in a live event, breaking news coverage, etc. These are often the moments when viewers are most engaged, yet traditional advertising requires stepping away from the content to deliver a commercial message.

Transmit’s in-stream ad formats offer a different approach. Over the past year, Wurl and Transmit have worked together to help publishers monetize these high-attention moments across live and on-demand programming through innovative in-stream ad experiences.

Transmit-powered in-stream units – including Picture-in-Picture (PiP) and L-bar formats – display ads alongside live content. These innovative video units share the screen with the content and keep audiences in the moment while adding a second, complementary revenue stream that works in parallel with traditional ad breaks.

For advertisers, this creates premium sponsorship opportunities tied to high-attention moments. For publishers, it unlocks additional inventory without adding more interruption to the viewing experience.

Real-world results

Over the past year, FAST publishers, advertisers, and sports leagues have already begun seeing the benefits of in-stream monetization: 

• The Professional Fighters League reported a 15% increase in impressions within three months of leveraging Wurls’ integration with Transmit.
• World Poker Tour saw an 11% increase in total impressions from Transmit’s in-stream ad units within the first month.
• Stadium leveraged Wurl’s integration with Transmit to launch a unique sponsorship campaign using L-bar and Picture-in-Picture formats, creating a seamless viewing experience while helping sponsors stand out in a crowded advertising environment.

These results highlight a broader trend: advertisers are increasingly willing to invest in premium placements that maintain viewer engagement while delivering stronger visibility and impact.

The next evolution of FAST monetization

As the partnership between Wurl and Transmit has evolved, so has the opportunity for publishers.

Most recently, we expanded our collaboration with a new commercial layer designed to help publishers unlock incremental revenue from existing FAST streams. The solution works alongside current distribution, technology, and monetization strategies, creating additional opportunities to monetize high-attention moments without requiring publishers to change how they operate.

The goal remains simple: help content owners generate greater value from premium programming while maintaining the flexibility and control they’ve built into their businesses.

Looking ahead

As streaming continues to evolve, publishers are increasingly looking for monetization strategies that complement existing ad experiences rather than simply adding more interruptions. In-stream advertising represents one of the most promising opportunities to do exactly that.

By creating new inventory around premium moments, publishers can increase revenue, advertisers can engage audiences more effectively, and viewers can stay connected to the content they came to watch.