蘑菇AV

Ad spending is looking shaky for many of the legacy formats across digital and traditional. New channels have arrived, however, and there are bright spots. This year could be rough, but 2024 is looking better.

TMN ad spending will represent a fraction of total digital ad spending. TMN ad spending as a share of digital ad spending is set to increase modestly, from 0.7% in 2024 to 0.8% in 2026. While commerce media will continue to be dominated by ad spending on RMNs, TMNs make up a distant second tier, ahead of ad spending within the still-nascent financial media network (FMN) cohort.

Snap aims to highlight the experimental features available on Snapchat+ and leverage its leadership in AI and augmented reality through the McDonald鈥檚 partnership, which could help the company attract more users鈥攁nd in turn, more ad dollars. Our take: Snapchat鈥檚 decision to collaborate with McDonald鈥檚 shows its evolving strategy to bolster user monetization through premium subscriptions.

Programmatic Digital Audio and Podcast Ad Spending 2025 (蘑菇AV subscription required). Note: Data was provided to 蘑菇AV by Comscore.

In response to viewership spikes, podcast ad spending is increasing. US spending is projected to reach $2.51 billion this year, growing 11% YoY, per our forecast. By 2028, spending will exceed $3 billion. Creator-audience relationships are important to listeners.

To help marketers better understand where and how ad dollars are being spent, Nielsen has expanded Ad Intel coverage to include 20 individual platforms, capturing 95% of the US CTV ad market. This transparency enables brands to analyze competitor strategies, assess platform performance, and make smarter investment decisions.

By developing offerings for multiple monetization channels across platforms, NBCU is reducing vulnerability to declining revenues and ad spend. While sports will create immediate viewership spikes for traditional TV and streaming, Peacock鈥檚 diverse content will build sustainable long-term subscription and advertising revenues independent of sport seasons.

Protogiannis called it the most exciting development yet, noting that it helps link real audience behavior to media spend. In an industry increasingly focused on accountability, Nexxen and LG Ad Solutions are showing how advanced tools and human analysis can work together to deliver deeper insights and more confident decision-making.

From 2024 to 2026, FMN ad spend will grow at a breakneck compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 106.3%, per our forecast. While that will account for only 0.4% of total 2026 US digital ad spending, the growth rate reflects FIs鈥� eagerness to secure their share of ad dollars by monetizing their first-party data. Ad revenues are looking increasingly attractive for FIs:.

Despite a 750% increase in ad spending over the past decade, YouTube will account for just 2.5% of global digital ad revenues this year. Platforms like Meta and Amazon capture larger shares despite YouTube鈥檚 unmatched audience size and engagement. YouTube has pulled multiple media types into its orbit, disrupting traditional models.

We鈥檒l be watching whether it can sustain Platform growth above 15% as comps tighten later in the year鈥攅specially without the benefit of last year鈥檚 political ad spending.

Although still a small share of ad spend, in-store retail media is expanding rapidly. Retailers like CVS and 7-Eleven are using digital screens and audio ads to engage shoppers closer to the point of purchase.

With language barriers falling, communities flourishing, and ad dollars flowing, Reddit is becoming a global platform powered by local culture.

Why it鈥檚 happening: Platforms face slowing ad growth, rising tech infrastructure costs, and supporting gigantic agency-facing teams鈥攁s Meta and others do鈥攊s expensive. If platforms鈥� genAI tools can replace agency support functions鈥攍ike campaign setup, asset creation, or reporting鈥攊t could justify reducing headcount in those areas, turning what were once essential roles into potential cost savings.

OOH keeps gaining ad spending dollars, but its share of media budgets remains below pre-pandemic levels.

LinkedIn ad growth may be losing its shine in the near term, but its long game remains intact. Gaming, often overlooked, is steadily becoming a more dependable contributor. The only red flag? A company known for infrastructure bravado is now thinking twice before breaking ground. That鈥檚 a subtle but important signal in an AI arms race that may be getting ahead of itself.

The intensity of the dispute reflects a shrinking pool of high-value media accounts, with agency holding companies鈥� share of US ad spend falling from 44.6% in 2019 to just 29.6% in Q1 2024 per Advertiser Perceptions. Our take: WPP鈥檚 loss of Mars should serve as a wake-up call.

Meta鈥檚 CPMs have remained consistent, and the company is poised to gain a significant portion of reallocated ad dollars if a ban does occur. Other platforms that could benefit from weaker demand for TikTok include YouTube Shorts and Snapchat.

On today's podcast episode, we discuss where ad dollars outweigh time spent with media, where time outweighs the ad dollars, and where the two are most closely aligned. Tune in to the discussion with host Marcus Johnson and forecasting writer Ethan Cramer-Flood.

Tariffs and related market turmoil could also threaten brand partnerships and drive US social network ad spending growth down 10% this year, crafting a storm of uncertainty. Short-form benefits: Longer-form video content can be more expensive to produce, requiring more resources and often needing multiple episodes to gain user attention.

Hubspot鈥檚 head of brand paid media, Jonathon McKenzie, said that OOH accounts for about 40% of the company鈥檚 ad spend in North America. 鈥淥utdoor is really a barometer for where culture is at,鈥� said Pat LaCroix, executive vice president of media and growth at MissionOne Media. Billboards build brand legitimacy. OOH has faced challenges due to difficulty with measurement.