Out-of-home advertising revenue rose 4.7% in the first quarter of 2015 compared to the previous year, accounting for $1.59 billion, based on figures released by the Outdoor Advertising Association of America [1], Washington, D.C..
[2]The revenue increase marks the industry’s 20th consecutive quarter of growth. OOH outperformed all other forms of traditional media, which as a whole were down, according to Kantar Media [3]. The OAAA does not distinguish between OOH and DOOH, nor offer a breakdown of figures between the two.
“The first few months of the year reflected strong growth across all OOH formats and an increase in nine of the top 10 product categories,” says Nancy Fletcher, OAAA president & CEO. “OOH also significantly outperformed the GDP, beating it by over four percentage points.”
The nine revenue growth categories included Miscellaneous Services and Amusements; Retail; Media & Advertising; Public Transportation; Hotels & Resorts; Financial; Government, Politics & Organizations; Insurance & Real Estate; Communications; and Automotive Dealers and Services.
Ranked in order of OOH spending, the top 10 advertisers in the first quarter were McDonalds, Apple, Metro PCS, Verizon, Warner Bros Pictures, T-Mobile, Chase, Citi, HBO, and Samsung.
Among the top 30 OOH advertisers, those with increases greater than the OOH quarterly growth of 4.7 percent included (in order of growth): Charles Schwab, Cadillac, Microsoft, Google, Universal Pictures, Verizon, Warner Bros Pictures, American Express, New York State Lottery, T-Mobile, Samsung, Cox, Chick-Fil-A Restaurant, Geico, Metro PCS, HSBC, and Apple.
“The industry displayed broad strength with increases in the billboard, transit, and street furniture segments, which also reflects the growing importance of the digital platform and OOH’s ability to connect with mobile consumers,” says Stephen Freitas, OAAA chief marketing officer.
OAAA issues full industry pro forma revenue estimates that include, but are not limited to, Miller Kaplan [4] and Kantar Media (which is not adjusted to reflect changes in data sources), and member company affidavits. Revenue estimates include digital and static billboard, street furniture, transit, alternative, and cinema advertising.