As digital advertising continues to reshape the global media landscape, comparing the trends across major markets can provide valuable insights. In this article, we analyse the key findings from the IAB’s latest reports for Australia, the US, and the UK, highlighting how each market is responding to the rapid evolution of digital advertising in CY24.
*Sources of the analysis below is based on the IAB Australia / PwC Internet Advertising Revenue Report, IAB US / PwC Internet Advertising Revenue Report, IAB UK and Mediasense Digital Advertising Study
Top Digital Market:
The US saw the highest growth across the three markets, with a 15% increase, fuelled by election-related advertising. The UK experienced a 13% growth, which is particularly impressive given its high growth rate in 2023. Australia, while still outpacing total media growth, showed a softer increase of 11% in 2024 compared to both the US and UK.
| Total Digital Ad Market Growth | AU | US | UK | EU (incl UK) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 vs 2022 | 4% | 7% | 11% | 11% |
| 2024 vs 2023 | 11% | 15% | 13% | 16% |
Distribution of Investment:
Notable differences exist across the markets in how digital ad dollars are distributed:
- Search: Represents 47% of the UK market, 44% in Australia, 40% in the US and 36% in EU.
- Video: Shares are similar in Australia (28%) and the US (29%).
- Classified Listings: Australia stands out with 16%, driven by strong local offerings.
- Audio: The US leads with 3%, with Australia and the UK at 1.9% and 1.5%, respectively. Share in the EU is only 0.9%
Growth by Formats:
Both search and social benefited from election-related spending in the US, leading to growth rates higher than the UK and Australia. Video saw similar growth across all three markets. Audio growth remained strong in Australia but softened in the US and saw a slight decline in the UK. Podcast investment grew significantly more than streaming audio in the US and UK.
| Growth by Format 2024 vs 2023 | AU | US | UK | EU (incl UK) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Search | 10% | 16% | 13% | 12% |
| Social | 19% | 37% | 20% | 24% |
| Video | 20% | 19% | 20% | 24% |
| Audio: Streaming and Podcasting | 18% | 9% | -1% | 18% |
| Audio Streaming | 17% | 2% | -8% | 17% |
| Podcast | 19% | 26% | 8% | 21% |
Market Concentration:
The US and UK market report on market concentration in relation to investment.
- Top 10 Media Companies: In 2024, the top 10 media companies represented 78% of the UK market and 81% of the US market.
- Top 5 Companies in the UK: Accounted for 74% of the market, growing 15%, outpacing the rest of the market.
Retail Media:
Retail media increased 23% in both the US and UK markets in 2024, although the retail media makes a significantly higher of the US market representing approximately 17% of the market versus 4% of the UK market.
The full reports can be downloaded here:
IAB Australia / PwC Internet Advertising Revenue Report –
IAB Australia / PwC Internet Advertising Revenue Report
IAB US / PwC Internet Advertising Revenue Report – https://www.iab.com/insights/internet-advertising-revenue-report-full-year-2024/
IAB UK and Mediasense Digital Advertising Study –
https://www.iabuk.com/news-article/digital-adspend-2024-uks-overall-digital-ad-market-hits-ps355bn
