Numatec’s EKN Solutions enters Romania to capture programmatic CTV growth

The entry of a specialized programmatic player like EKN reflects the maturation of the Romanian digital market, where advertisers are shifting toward high-impact, non-traditional formats. By integrating CTV and PDOOH into a single omnichannel stack, EKN addresses the infrastructure gap for local brands seeking transparency beyond social media 'walled gardens.' This launch highlights a broader trend of supply-side curation in emerging European markets, as platforms race to offer advanced measurement and cookieless solutions to combat fragmented viewership. Watch for EKN’s ability to secure local premium inventory partnerships to challenge established regional ad networks.

The expansion follows a period of significant growth for the Romanian digital advertising sector, which reached an estimated value of €283 million in 2024, per Initiative Romania. While television still commands over 50% of total ad spend in the country, digital media is the primary growth driver, fueled by a 30% surge in retail media and increasing adoption of short-form video platforms. Local reporting from December 2024 suggests that while search and social remain dominant, inventory within specialized channels like CTV and LED-based digital out-of-home is rapidly expanding to meet advertiser demand for cross-channel performance.

Across the broader European landscape, CTV ad viewership rose by 31% in the first half of 2025, according to the FreeWheel Video Marketplace Report. Despite this growth, programmatic execution in the region has historically lagged behind the U.S. market, with a higher share of inventory tied up in direct broadcaster video on-demand (BVOD) agreements. IAB Europe reported in May 2025 that total digital ad spend in Europe surpassed €100 billion, with CTV and retail media specifically offsetting declines in traditional search budgets.

EKN’s move also aligns with a wider geographic push by its parent company, Numatec. Per recent company announcements, the group has recently expanded its EKN subsidiary into Brazil, Spain, and several Latin American markets including Colombia and Ecuador. This global strategy focuses on deploying 'curated marketplaces' or private marketplace (PMP) structures that allow brands to bypass open exchanges in favor of premium, brand-safe environments—a shift driven by increasing regulatory pressure around data privacy and the ongoing phase-out of third-party cookies.