The AI-assisted search revolution will take place primarily on the nonretail battleground, which is still dominated by Google. But Google lost share of the market last year, and Microsoft and Apple are starting to appear a little closer in Google’s rearview mirror.
US upfront TV ad spending will fall by 3.6% to $18.64 billion for the 2023–2024 TV season, a downward revision of 5.0% from our previous forecast.
It’s been an upfronts season like none other as digital creeps into linear’s territory and the Writers Guild of America writers’ strike rages on. “We’re kind of at an inflection point,” said our analyst Paul Verna. From a buyer’s market to tumult at NBCUniversal, here are five trends Verna noted from upfronts so far.
Meta is way ahead of competitors in US video ad spend, with 30.1% share this year compared with YouTube’s 8.3% and TikTok’s 6.5%, according to our forecast. TikTok is on YouTube’s tail as it gains share, but the short video newcomer won’t surpass YouTube before the end of our forecast period in 2025.
While Meta struggles with innovation and attracting younger users, at Snapchat, innovation and Gen Z users are in high supply. So why is the company struggling? “Snap doesn’t lack when it comes to innovation,” our analyst Jasmine Enberg said on a recent episode of our “Behind the Numbers” podcast. “But there are serious questions about the health of its core business, and it really needs to focus on turning those things around.”
Disney adapts to industry challenges: House of Mouse emphasizes ESPN's sports offerings and nonscripted content at upfronts.
As the so-called AI arms race heats up, US site visit data from digital intelligence platform Similarweb reflects early changes in consumer behavior.
The US is the overwhelming center of gravity for all things advertising—and it will remain that way, even though 2023 will see a slight share drop for the country across various metrics. By the end of next year, the US shares of total and digital ad spending will increase once again.
NBCUniversal highlights Peacock at upfront: Media titan reflects the industry's digital tilt amidst picketing and leadership changes
US connected TV (CTV) ad spend will continue to grow through 2027, when it will reach $40.90 billion, according to our forecast. Apart from a small bump next year, ad spend on TV (including broadcast and cable TV) will decline over the next few years. Still, TV’s share of total ad spend is larger than CTV’s, indicating it remains a key player in marketers’ ad strategies.
US digital ad spend growth will return to double digits next year at 11.2% growth, following 2023’s slower growth of 7.8%. Growth certainly won’t return to the 37.6% growth we saw in 2021, but it will increase steadily. Come 2025, US digital ad spend will pass $300 billion and keep climbing to nearly $400 billion by the end of 2027.
Twitter’s CEO is a strategic pick that ultimately won’t do much: Linda Yaccarino is an experienced exec, but it may be too late to stop Twitter’s decline.
Microsoft’s new Bing has had a persistent hold over headlines. Combine this with a third consecutive quarter of ad loss for YouTube and the picture for Google may look less than rosy. But the company remains in good shape, with overall earnings beating expectations. It remains dominant in search, and YouTube use is still remarkably high. Here’s a closer look.
The company is threading artificial intelligence into its core products and services used by millions of users while doubling down on AI accountability. Read online
Google and Meta’s combined share of the US digital ad market dropped below 50% in 2022, and in just a few years that figure will be down to 43.0%. The triopoly is losing share now, as well; Amazon’s ascent will not be fast enough to offset the weakness of the other two giants.
YouTube is no longer separate from the streaming wars: Almost half of its viewership is on TVs, and advertisers are spending heavily on the platform.
Next year, Snapchat’s ad revenues will increase by 10.4% worldwide after a year of almost no growth. Its ad revenues will rise from $3.80 billion this year to $4.20 billion next year, but they’ll still make up just 0.6% of total digital ad revenues worldwide.
Both companies are fighting to grab a larger share of digital ad spending growth.
While the platform’s ad-supported tier gains momentum, Netflix needs to beef up its targeting capabilities to win advertisers over. Meanwhile, viewers may be turned off by a heavy ad load and a crackdown on password sharing. But global growth shows promise for Netflix’s future.
On today's episode, we discuss what the biggest impact of generative artificial intelligence (AI) will be, whether time spent with ad-supported media is falling, why Lululemon is looking to sell its connected fitness company Mirror, the battle between SMS and email, what makes a shopping experience convenient, which country could see its population cut in half; and more. Tune in to the discussion with our vice president of content Suzy Davidkhanian, and analysts Blake Droesch and Paul Verna.