The news: Substack launched a connected TV (CTV) app for Apple TV and Google TV, seeking to expand creator-led video content into the living room.

• The app includes a “For You” recommendation feed, similar to TikTok’s format, which suggests videos from various creators.
• It’s available to both free and paid subscribers, but access to the app’s contents depends on users’ subscriptions.

The opportunity: Substack has invested substantial resources into video and livestreaming, building on earlier launches of video posts and monetization tools. It’s also been working to expand past a writing platform into a creator-driven network.

• Substack previously added financial incentives to attract creators, including spending millions to lure TikTok talent to the platform.
• The company has also opened up to ads and sponsored programs that let writers place paid brand placements inside newsletters, reflecting a broader shift in its monetization strategy.

Zooming out: Video has become a mainstay focus for many platforms, ranging from visual podcast content to publishers’ forays into short-form video to address declining engagement with legacy media.

Instagram is similarly chasing big-screen video engagement with a CTV app for Reels, marking how platforms increasingly see the living room as the next frontier for creator discovery and attention.

The caveat: Substack is facing user backlash over whether it’s becoming a venture-capital-driven “everything app,” which some see as a shift away from its original writing focus.

Specific complaints from users highlight a perceived lack of attention toward improving tools for traditional newsletters in favor of flashy multimedia expansions. The top comment on Substack’s blog post says, “Please don’t do this. This is not YouTube. Elevate the written word.”

Implications for brands: As creator platforms expand into new formats and screens, advertisers may gain new storytelling and sponsorship opportunities—but only if those formats align with audience expectations and trust. Managing that balance can include A/B testing new content formats before mass launches and giving platform changes time to gauge audience response, rather than reshaping user experiences overnight.

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