National Advertising Market Gains 7% in October

Standard Media Index, the most trusted source of ad pricing and revenue data, announced that the national advertising marketplace grew 7% in October year-over-year (YoY).

Looking across platforms, Digital was the strongest performer this month, growing 17%. That was followed by Out-of-Home (OOH) at 10%, Radio at 7%, Television flat, and Print at -27%.

National Television was flat in October with Broadcast down -7% and Cable up 5%.  Broadcast revenue tumbled as NFL games dropped the ball this year.  Broadcast networks did trend positively in News and in Primetime Original Entertainment verticals.  Additionally, Broadcast networks increased their amount of 30-second commercial spots by 5% YoY.  Among those, the percentage of spots that were unpaid – also known as makegoods or ADUs – fell by six percentage points. Nevertheless, these adjustments weren’t enough to make up for the losses in NFL revenue.

Meanwhile, Cable networks increased revenue by 5% YoY, even as commercial spots remained flat.  Cable News has held steadfast for the year, and it remained the fastest-growing vertical this month.

“The linear television season has started sluggishly as expectations of robust demand haven’t yet materialized in the market,” said James Fennessy, CEO of Standard Media Index.  “Demand from marketers continues to outpace audience erosion even if that is due to more limited digital video advertising options due to ad-free delivery.”

Cable News continued to be National TV’s leading genre in ad revenue in October.  The six cable news networks – FOX News, CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, HLN, and FOX Business – grew a combined 14% YoY during the month.  Among the networks, MSNBC was the top performer, growing 30% YoY.

Additionally, Broadcast News was positive in October, rising 2%.  ABC grew the most among English-language networks, rising 13% YoY.  On the Spanish-language side, Univision and Telemundo increased ad revenue in their News divisions by 25% and 31% respectively.

October was a tough month for live sporting events, as the NFL fumbled its television revenue. Part of the decline resulted from 27 games in October this year compared to 31 games this month last year.  Combining September and October, the NFL aired 51 games in both 2017 and 2018.  In the two-month period, NFL revenue fell -19%, as the number of 30-second commercial spots fell -6%.

“The effects of the lower audiences last year are spilling into this season, as NFL revenue is down,” said Fennessy.  “Nevertheless, as the market reports improving viewership, we will see how these trends change over the remaining months of the season.”

On the other hand, the 2018 World Series hit it out of the park. The series, which aired on FOX, increased paid unit rates by 15% YoY.  Altogether, FOX caught $121.6 Million in ad revenue.  With 5 games this year, compared to 7 games in 2017, the average revenue per game was up 27%.

Across National TV, the Auto industry spent the most on advertising this month, although that spend is down -9% YoY.  Rounding out the top five were: Entertainment (-7%), Prescription Drugs (1%), Insurance (9%), and Quick Serve Restaurants (-3%).