BIA has released a new report about U.S. local advertising, with a forecast that political and over-the-top advertising with be critical for growth next year. The report projected that total local advertising revenue will increase from $152.5 billion in 2019 to $161.3 billion in 2020.
Traditional media revenue is pegged to deliver more than half of the total, at an estimated $94.4 billion next year. Online and digital revenue are anticipated to reach $66.9 billion in 2020. That would be a 41.5% share of the projected total, and an increase from $59.3 billion in 2019 revenue.
“The expectation of an aggressive presidential election next year, along with primaries and state-wide races, indicate that political ad spending will be a serious driver of local ad revenue next year,” said Mark Fratrik, chief economist and SVP at BIA Advisory Services. “Combine these factors with the ongoing growth of mobile and social advertising and the emergence and future significant advancement in over-the-top (OTT) advertising, the revenue landscape for next year looks robust.”