Ad spending in India to grow at a slower pace in 2024, says GroupM

livemint.com:

MUMBAI : Advertising expenditure in India is expected to grow at 10.2% in 2024, slower than last year’s 11.3%, according to media investment company GroupM. But even at that pace, India would still be among the fastest-growing ad markets globally. Overall advertising expenditure this year is expected to increase by ₹14,423 crore to ₹1,55,386 crore, GroupM said Tuesday in its annual forecast titled ‘This Year Next Year’.

In absolute terms, that’s about the same amount spent on advertising in 2023, when growth in ad spending turned out to be slower than the initial 15.5% pace GroupM had projected. Digital media advertising is expected to grow by 13% to reach ₹88,502 crore in 2024, cornering 57% of the total ad spending pie, according to GroupM. “The advertising landscape is evolving with the fragmentation of search, the rapid rise of influencer marketing and retail media," said Ashwin Padmanabhan, president-investments, trading, and partnerships, at GroupM India.

“Within digital ad revenue, search contributes 22%, retail media 18%, and the rest 60%. Sectors like auto, realty and offline retail are expected to power the overall advertising growth," he said. Television is expected to grow by 7% and contribute 29% of the total ad spending, down from 30% in 2023.

Cinema is expected to see the highest growth of 15%, although from a low base, to touch ₹879 crore, GroupM said. The agency highlighted that unlike in western markets, where traditional media is declining, in India traditional media is also growing. Print, for instance, is expected to grow at 5% to reach ₹15,350 crore in 2024, commanding a 10% share of the total ad pie.