June 3, 2026
Harvard Business Review recently published an article co-authored by Gordon Burtch, Allen and Kelli Questrom Professor in Information Systems, discussing how giving consumers more control over their advertising experience can improve engagement and advertising effectiveness.
Across three studies involving more than 1,300 participants, researchers found that allowing viewers to choose either which ads they see or when they see them increased attention to ads while reducing annoyance. The study found that viewers who had control over the ad experience showed 9% to 15% greater attention to advertisements and reported lower levels of frustration, leading to stronger ad recall, more favorable brand perceptions, and higher purchase intent.
The findings challenge the traditional “captive audience” advertising model and suggest that streaming platforms can improve viewer satisfaction and advertising performance simultaneously. As the authors conclude, “the interests of platforms, advertisers, and viewers need not be as opposed as the captive-audience model assumes,” highlighting how consumer choice can create benefits for audiences, advertisers, and content providers alike.
