Global spend on OOH advertising has broken 5% barrier for first time

Based on 2023 figures, OOH now accounts for 5.2% of global ad expenditure, up from 2022’s 4.7%. This is according to Tom Goddard, President of the World Out of Home Organization, who was speaking during its Annual Congress in Hong Kong last week. 

The WOO’s own global expenditure survey shows all major regions posted strong growth in 2023, with Asia-Pacific rising by a spectacular 25%, boosted by a post-Covid bounce-back in Mainland China and continued strong growth in Australia of almost 10%. 

Europe overtook North America for the first time in OOH expenditure, breaking through the US$10-billion mark, with Latin America and Africa also posting strong growth numbers and with plenty of room to grow faster. 

Europe leads growth in digital OOH 

In terms of the rapidly growing digital out-of-home element, Europe now leads on 40%, with APAC and North America in the mid-thirties. At country level, Australia leads the field with 75%, followed by the UK at 65%. China, South Korea and Malaysia join Australia in the top 10 ranking. 

The WOO believes 2024 is set to record further strong out-of-home growth with the Olympics, the Euros football championships, and some 50% of the world’s population going to the polls, which will boost political advertising. 

Among the main growth drivers, Goddard said, are better and more effective measurement, consolidation among media owners, and increased AdTech investment coming into the market, as the realisation dawns that OOH is the only traditional medium worldwide growing its market share. 

“We can now see an exciting new horizon for OOH as more and more advertisers and agencies acknowledge that we’re now a progressive medium, popular with consumers and the cities – where the much-needed infrastructure we pay for adds to the quality of urban life,” Goddard concluded.