Ad spend in Western Europe to grow 3.5 per cent in 2015
Digital will be the fastest growing ad format in Western Europe (up 9.3 per cent year-on-year) followed by cinema (up 4.3 per cent) and TV advertising (2.7 per cent). Outdoor will grow 2.2 per cent and radio by 1.2 per cent. Print will be the only ad format to see a year-on-year decline in revenue (down 1.8 per cent). Traditional media revenues, overall, will rise just 0.7 per cent.
“Western European ad spend growth in 2015 will be solid and unspectacular due to the lack of ‘impact’ events combined with increased political and economic instability in parts of Eastern and Central Europe,” said Strategy Analytics’ Michael Goodman, co-author of the report. “However, it looks better for 2016, a bumper year for ad-stimulating events, with the Olympics and European Football Championships.”
Size and share
Digital will remain the biggest ad format in Western Europe in 2015, accounting for 34 per cent (€34.0bn) of ad revenues, followed by TV with 28 per cent (€29.9bn) and print with 26 per cent (€26.0bn). Outdoor (€6.3bn), radio (€5.0bn), and cinema (€678m) will account for the remaining 12 per cent.
TV’s share in Western Europe is much lower than the global average (39 per cent) and the U.S. (42 per cent) where it’s still the dominant medium.
“Even through TV’s share is declining in Western Europe, this is less about ad dollars flowing out of TV and more about dollars flowing into digital from print and radio,” said Leika Kawasaki, co-author of the report. “Therefore, major TV broadcasters across the continent will see little, if any, real decline in revenues, just a shift in the source from linear TV ads to online video.
“Print will be the major casualty, falling to 22 per cent market share in Western Europe in 2018 – almost half the share it held a decade earlier.”
More like this
ZenithOptimedia forecasts global adspend growth in 2015