How the Ad Market Is Changing in 2024, According to Magna’s Global Ad Forecast

Ahead of Cannes Lions, Magna delivered its latest global advertising forecast, and the new report gives a snapshot of the current ad market.

According to Magna, advertising revenues will reach $927 billion this year, growing by +10%. The company said it is raising its 2024 growth forecast following a stronger-than-expected ad market in the first quarter and an improvement in the economic outlook.

The U.S. ad market will grow by 10.7%, reaching $374 billion, according to the company, and traditional media owner ad sales will grow by +4.4% to reach $111 billion. Meanwhile, digital pure players, including media owners for search, commerce, social and audio formats, will have ad revenue grow +13.5% to $263 billion.

Here’s what to know about the changing ad market in 2024:

Ad-supported streaming isn’t slowing down

According to the report, traditional TV streamers, such as Disney+ and Max, and pure streaming companies, such as Netflix and Amazon, will generate at least $18 billion this year, including growth of +16%.

The growth comes amid the global expansion of ad tiers. For instance, Amazon introduced its ad tier to the U.S., Canada, Mexico, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the U.K. in the first half of 2024. And with the ad tier serving as the default for subscribers, Magna reports many viewers will remain with ads.

Meanwhile, buyers already told ADWEEK that this year’s upfront conversations would mostly focus on streaming—in addition to sports.

Traditional media growth is driven by cyclical events

Traditional media ad sales, including TV, radio, publishing and out-of-home, will grow to $272 billion in 2024, according to Magna. That’s a +3% jump when compared to 2023. A record number of cyclical events, including the Paris Olympics and the U.S. presidential election, are driving growth.

In the U.S., Magna expects the 2024 election campaigns to generate $9 billion of incremental advertising revenues, an increase of +10% vs 2020.

Companies are also seeing a +11% growth in non-linear ad sales, including the aforementioned ad-supported streaming. Non-linear ad sales now account for one-quarter of total traditional media ad revenues.

Digital pure players are dominating

Magna reports DPP will reach $655 billion this year, growing +13% over 2023. When all is said and done, DPP will account for 71% of all ad sales. Growth factors include the rise of ecommerce, retail media networks providing consumer data to the programmatic ecosystem, growing digital in emerging markets and better monetization of short vertical video.

Keyword Search also remains the largest ad format, reaching $330 billion.

The digital growth bodes well for Google, Meta and Amazon, a.k.a. the big three, which already captured around 60% of total ad revenues outside of China in 2023.

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Auto and CPGs are outperforming

According to Magna, auto, food and drinks will be among the fastest-growing categories for 2024. Though the company noted that car sales are slowing down in 2024, growing only 2% in the U.S. from Jan. through May, a push towards EVs and major sports events will bring “above-average” marketing and ad activity.

Meanwhile, food and beverages were among the many victims of higher inflation in the last two years. However, that’s returning to normal levels.