Today’s pandemic appears to be accelerating the shift in today’s media landscape for reasons not previously anticipated.  Live sports were the lifeblood of linear TV.  OOH and terrestrial radio depends on commuters in cars.  And print demands pick up at a store or delivery to your home.  While there will be dramatic pullbacks in media across the board, some channels will suffer more than others.

Many are projecting (and praying) that the 2H 2020 will return to a new normal as the pandemic becomes more controlled and the economy and consumers return to work.  But a dismal 1H 2020 will result in real reductions from prior projections for media.  According to Magna Global, here are some of the takeaways:

-linear TV spend will drop almost 12% from 2019.  Thank goodness we’re in an election year because, without political ad spending, the drop would have been 15%.   Local and national TV will both get hurt.

-print was slated to drop 17%.  Now 25%.  Few local retailers are advertising.

-OOH was scheduled to grow by almost 4%.  Like radio, OOH depends on a car traveling local audience.  Because of pullbacks, OOH is now scheduled to drop almost 12% and radio 14%.

The strong (digital) keeps getting stronger.  While growth rates have slowed with the slowing economy, digital is still growing at 4% year on year.    Its share continues to grow and social remains particularly strong.

To review the full report, click here.

MAGNA FORECASTS V-SHAPED RECOVERY FOR THE US ADVERTISING MARKET

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