Outdoor growth plateaus in third quarter

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The booming Out of Home (OOH) media industry has suffered its first reverse in seven years, with the third quarter figures slightly down, but year on year the trend remains up.

Slipping: spend on out of home
Slipping: spend on out of home

Revenue growth ground to a stop in the third quarter, with money spent on outdoor slipping to $218.2m, down from $220.2m for the third quarter in 2018, representing a 0.9 per cent slip.

The halt in growth is unusual for the outdoor sector, which has been on a non-stop upward trajectory for the past 20 years, apart from the two quarters following the GFC and a blip in 2012.

Year to date industry revenue is still tracking upwards, it has increased 3.1 per cent, posting $665.5m, up from $645.3m last year. However it means the calendar year $1bn barrier many remain tantilisingly out of reach.

The figures for this year compare with quarter three last year, which was one of OOH’s healthiest quarters to date, with an increase of 10.7 per cent from the previous year, 2017.

 In further concerning news for the nation’s wide format printers digital revenue continues to grow and is sitting at 55.3 per cent of total net media revenue year-to-date, an increase over the recorded 50.2 per cent for the same period last year, meaning print’s share of the revenue is down by around five per cent.

Putting a positive spin on the figures Charmaine Moldrich, CEO of the OMA, said, “The plateauing of revenue growth in quarter three is not unexpected given the current national financial outlook. The last time the industry experienced negative growth was quarter four of 2012, which was also in comparison to a healthy quarter the previous year.

“The industry has enjoyed seven years of consecutive growth at a time when other traditional media channels have experienced declines in revenue, as well as audience. Out of Home is both resilient and buoyant. While the current economic outlook is affecting advertiser confidence, we know that it is also the time that advertisers need to keep their brands top of mind and Out of Home delivers; broadcasting its messages to growing audiences in the public space,”

 Moldrich continued “The Standard Media Index AU/NZ announced last week that the first eight months of 2019 have reflected lower advertising demands with the Australian market declining 4.9 per cent. OOH has continued to grow in this challenging environment, increasing revenue year to date by 3 per cent.

 “We will continue to see growth in Out of Home over the medium and longer term, as we innovate and make it easier to plan, buy and measure our channel.”

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