Adrian J Cotterill, Editor-in-Chief
Outsmart, the trade body for the UK Out of Home industry has announced that Out of Home revenue for January to June 2020 declined -44.8% year on year, generating total revenues of just GBP 329m. Classic and Digital Out of Home revenues declined by -50.8% and – 38.8% respectively. As a result, Digital’s share of revenue increased to 56% compared to 50% in H1 2019.
Justin Cochrane, Chair of Outsmart, told us “We knew Q2 was going to be very challenging for Out of Home, as it has been for many sectors. More positively, there is good evidence that audiences and revenues increased throughout July as brands reconnect both locally and nationally outdoors.”
The quarterly figures provide greater insight into the story of the sector. Following a -3.1% decline in Q1 2020, the second quarter of 2020 saw a sharp decline as the UK entered lockdown, with OOH revenue down -83.0% from £310 million in Q2 2019 to £53 million in Q2 2020. Digital’s share of revenue increased sharply to 68% vs Q1 2020 (53%).
The figures, collated by PwC, show the significant impact #COVID19 has had on the Out of Home industry as the public reduced their movement following government advice. In response, Outsmart members donated media space worth over GBP 50 million to support key workers, front line services and build a sense of national unity across Q2.
The challenging market conditions are expected to begin easing in Q3 as the country continues to emerge from lockdown, with early indications that July revenue is recovering versus Q2, as audiences head outdoors during the summer holiday period.
More detail can be found here.
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