What Makes CTV Advertising Delicious for DoorDash

When you think about DoorDash, your first thought is probably hot pizza, but not CTV advertising charts. Yet here we are: DoorDash’s name is stamped on a joint report with eMarketer about how Americans are spending their time on connected devices.

The sponsorship feels unusual at first glance, but it might be the clearest signal yet that DoorDash wants to be much more than a food delivery app. But that’s exactly the point: DoorDash wants your attention when you’re not even hungry, and it’s using connected TV to get there.

Let’s dive deep into the layers of DoorDash and its bid for attention in the living room.  

CTV’s ascending curve

The report makes it official. Connected TV (CTV) is stealing a bigger chunk of Americans’ screen time in 2025, with nearly thirty percent of all digital media consumption happening on CTV platforms. That means living room screens are pulling time away from mobile phones, which have been the unquestioned rulers of the digital kingdom for over a decade. By 2026, video across platforms will account for nearly half of all digital time. This shift is a turning point for advertisers who have long poured budgets into mobile-first strategies. 

In the context of this surge, DoorDash’s involvement begins to make sense. CTV is no longer just Netflix and chill. It’s evolving into a place where commerce, content, and advertising merge. From Hulu and Peacock to Roku’s free channels, CTV offers ad slots that are both premium and personal. And now brands like DoorDash are eying those slots as an entryway into consumers’ living rooms. 

DoorDash is in the CTV conversation

DoorDash’s sponsorship of the eMarketer report is less about generosity and more about narrative-shaping. For a company built on convenience and app loyalty, aligning with a study that highlights CTV’s rise allows it to position itself as a forward-thinking player in the advertising economy.  

It signals that DoorDash isn’t satisfied being just a middleman between restaurants and customers. It wants to be an everyday lifestyle platform that can also meet you on the biggest screen in your home. 

Think about the practicalities. DoorDash already makes money not only from deliveries but from its advertising marketplace inside the app, where restaurants pay for better visibility. That ad model works because of consumer time spent within DoorDash’s ecosystem.  

But if consumers are spending more hours watching connected TV, why not follow them there? Sponsoring a report that reinforces CTV’s dominance is a subtle way to remind advertisers that DoorDash intends to compete for ad budgets in this expanding medium. 

The Roku connection

This isn’t just speculation. Earlier, DoorDash partnered with Roku, a major CTV player, to test the waters of shoppable advertising. The partnership allowed viewers to see a DoorDash offer while streaming on Roku and claim it instantly through their TV remote. For instance, a promo for free delivery from a national chain could pop up during a binge session. That link between screen and service turns the TV into an order button, making ads genuinely actionable. 

By adding Roku into the picture, DoorDash showed its cards. It wants to integrate commerce into entertainment, making food ordering part of the CTV experience itself. The eMarketer sponsorship is therefore more than branding.

It’s part of a long game where DoorDash builds credibility as a player in living room advertising while testing ways to monetize attention far beyond the restaurant marketplace. 

From app to CTV advertising ecosystem

The timing also connects to DoorDash’s bigger ambition: to evolve from a delivery app into a full-scale convenience ecosystem.

Over the past few years, DoorDash has expanded its marketplace to include groceries, pet food, retail items, and even alcohol. Its advertising network has scaled alongside, offering brands a way to target consumers in the exact moment they are shopping. Now the next logical step is to link that shopping impulse to the moments when consumers are relaxing in front of a show. 

In essence, DoorDash is betting that your couch is the new checkout counter. By embedding itself in the CTV narrative, it is telling advertisers that delivery isn’t just about logistics. It is about owning moments of intent, whether you are hungry, browsing for a late-night snack, or simply being nudged by a clever CTV ad. 

Non-traditional advertisers, new agendas

DoorDash’s sponsorship also raises a bigger question. Are we entering an era where non-traditional advertisers will bankroll industry research to tilt attention toward their own ambitions?

Traditionally, CTV growth stories have been pushed by streaming giants, measurement firms, or ad tech platforms. A delivery company stepping in feels like a shift. It reflects how companies outside the media core are trying to shape industry narratives so that they are not just followers of trends but influencers of them. 

This tactic is not new in spirit. Think of banks sponsoring fintech surveys or airlines publishing travel trend reports. What is new is the way DoorDash is linking its own commerce future with the future of digital attention. By aligning with CTV research, it implicitly makes the case that its services belong in conversations about media time, not just meal time. 

The future of living room commerce

The DoorDash + Roku experiments are just a taste of what’s to come. Picture a future where CTV not only entertains but also facilitates impulse buying. That bowl of ramen in your favorite K-drama?  

One click and it’s on your DoorDash order list. The sponsorship of this report is DoorDash laying the groundwork to normalize the idea that ordering through your TV isn’t odd at all. It’s convenient, updated for the streaming era. 

Advertisers should pay attention. If delivery brands are investing in shaping the CTV narrative, it signals that shoppable TV is not a passing experiment. It is the next frontier of how commerce and content collide. 

The bigger lesson for advertisers is clear. CTV advertising is not just for entertainment brands anymore. It is a stage where delivery giants, retailers, and other non-media players will jockey for your living room attention. In that sense, DoorDash’s sponsorship is not just curious. It is prophetic. 

Cut to the chase 

DoorDash’s curious sponsorship of a CTV consumption report is not a quirky one-off. It is a glimpse into a strategy where the company positions itself as more than a delivery platform.  

By aligning with eMarketer’s data, testing shoppable ads with Roku, and expanding into every convenience category imaginable, DoorDash is angling to become a daily touchpoint in both digital and physical life.