In terms of digital advertising, Europe is perceived as a more regulation-driven market than North America. From the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act) to state-level laws on influencer marketing by countries such as France and Sweden, Europe strives to develop its market putting users first. Contrary to what skeptics say, these actions have not impeded its growth. Since the implementation of the GDPR in 2018, European advertising spending has recorded positive growth rates annually, with double-digital increases in four out of six years.
Top performers
In 2023, European advertisers allocated half of their
digital ad budgets to display ad formats. Video – a format fueled by the popularity of YouTube and TikTok — accounted for roughly 45 percent of that figure. It is especially popular in the United Kingdom (UK), where brands allocated nearly eight billion euros towards the medium. That is more than Germany, France, Italy, and Turkey —
the next largest markets — spent collectively. However, when looking at marketing budgets, the popularity of video advertising in the future seems threatened. When surveyed, 57 percent of marketers from Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA) said they were planning to decrease their video spending in 2024.
Important drivers
As an ever-increasing share of internet traffic is generated via smartphones and tablets, mobile advertising has become an essential tool. In 2023, approximately 48 percent of
European digital ad spend was devoted to mobile ad campaigns, and the share was expected to remain at the same level in 2024. In 2025, Europe is expected to become a mobile-first advertising market.
One vital driver of mobile ad spend growth is social media. With generations such as Gen Z and Gen Alpha being born directly into the digital realm, and apps such as Instagram drawing millions of users every day, mobile social media ad spend in Europe is the key factor in mobile media success. But just like video, social media is also losing its status of marketers’ favorite, as 68 percent of EMEA advertisers were planning to
reduce their investments in these platforms in 2024.
Future foci
If the popularity of both video and social media is dwindling, what will marketers turn to? For example podcasts – still a niche medium in Europe with
ad revenues of approximately 210 million euros – are expecting to experience an uptake in interest, with 40 percent of brands saying their 2024 podcast ad budgets would be higher than in 2023.
Additionally, trends such as sonic branding — the creation of branded soundscapes — and in-game audio ads are aiding
audio advertising spending in general to hit new peaks, with a record 900 million euros in 2023, a 23-percent annual growth compared to the year before.
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