Press Release Headlines

Standard Media Index (SMI) June and 2nd Quarter 2014 Ad Spend Data U.S. Media Market Highlights

SMI's total market spend indicates significant growth in Digital and Cable while Broadcast TV and Print drop on a year on year basis.

NEW YORK, July 23, 2014 /PRNewswire/ — Standard Media Index (SMI) today announces their Ad Spend data for June 2014 and the second quarter. The SMI pool now captures 75% of total U.S. agency spend, coming exclusively from the booking systems of 5 of the 6 global media holding groups, as well as leading independents. This actual spend data provides the clearest picture of the flow of dollars across the sector and details competitive performance for every media company in the U.S. on a monthly basis. SMI's proprietary methodology offers timely, unparalleled visibility into the media sector by key advertising categories.

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SMI's total market spend data highlights the ever-increasing dominance of the digital sector, with +10% YOY growth for Q2 and 9.6% for the month of June, in comparison to a total market decline in  Q2 of -.5%. In 2014, Twitter continues to overshadow all other digital vendors with a YOY growth for Jan-June of 115%. An additional sector showing growth is Cable TV, with an increase of 3.6% in Q2 and in June while the data reveals Broadcast TV showed a decline in both Q2 of -7% and June of -5.7%.

SMI Data Highlights

  • Digital is the largest growing media sector with +10% YOY growth for Q2 and 9.6% the month of June. Twitter continued to lead the growth of digital vendors with a high YOY growth for Jan-June at 115%.
  • The growth of Cable TV continued, with an increase of 3.6% in Q2 and in June. Broadcast TV showed a decline in both Q2 (-7%) and June (-5.7%).
  • Spurred by the soccer World Cup, Cable TV Sports content networks grew 22% for Q2 compared to Q2 2013 whilst total Television spend for Q2 2014 was down -1.4% YOY.
  • Digital Video showed an 8.3% increase for Q2 2014, with Sports content leading this subtype and growing 38% for the same period.
  • Both Digital and Television showed strong growth in Sports Apparel, Sports & Recreation Equipment for Q2 2014 YOY, (+70% Digital growth; +46% Television growth respectively.)
  • Automotive continues to hold the highest category share (15%) in both June and Q2, continuing to grow +1.3% in Q2 and 1.6% June 2014 compared to last year. Out of the Top 10 product categories Non-Alcoholic Beverages grew +28% showing the most growth in June, whilst Telecommunications grew +22.6%.
  • Total ad revenues for June remain stable, growing 6% in the CYTD over the same period in 2013, whilst Q2 results decline -.5%.

SMI Digital Market

  • SMI's Digital market continued to post double-digit monthly growth for June (+10% YOY for Q2 and 9.6% for June).
  • Digital Video showed an 8.3% increase for Q2, with Sports content leading this subtype and growing +38% for the same period.
  • Twitter continued to lead the growth of digital vendors for Jan-June (+115% YOY) followed by YouTube (+53.8% YOY), and ESPN.com (+37% YOY) compared with 2013.
  • Sports Apparel, Sports & Recreation Equipment and Non-Alcoholic Beverages were the Product Categories seeing the most growth in Q2 2014 (+70% and +39.5% respectively).

SMI Television Market

Cable TV:

  • Cable television showed 3.6% growth in both Q2 and June over 2013.
  • ESPN retains its share leader positioning with +21.8% YOY growth for Q2, due in part to its broadcasting of the World Cup.
  • The Cable TV Sports content networks grew 22% for Q2 compared to Q2 2013.
  • Eleven of the top 20 Cable networks showed YOY growth in Q2 with BET and Nickelodeon at the forefront.
  • Big gains for Q2 also seen by FX 14.3% and USA 10%
  • Toys and Video Games grew as a product category with double-digit increase for Q2 in the Television sector. Another growing category was Sports Apparel and Sports and Recreation Equipment, which showed +46.% growth for the same period.

Broadcast TV:

  • Total Television ad revenue declined -1.4% for Q2 YOY but remained stable for June 2014, Broadcast Television declined in both Q2 and June (-7% and -5.7% respectively).
  • Univision, the World Cup Championship broadcaster, showed +132% YOY growth for June and +45.8% for Q2.
  • The Automotive and Financial Services categories continue to generate steady ad revenue for Broadcast TV ($857.5m and $561m respectively) for the first half of 2014.
  • For the first half of 2014 NBC's Upfront & Scatter ad revenue has grown significantly compared to the same time last year.

SMI Print Market

  • Total Magazine market was down 13% for Q2.
  • In Magazines, Sports Illustrated, showed a +25% increase for June, driven by its publishing of World Cup news, ESPN Magazine also showed +6.8% growth for June.
  • Other Magazines showing growth were Glamour (+6% YOY for Q2 and +3% for the 2014 CYTD) and Vanity Fair (+21% for Q2 and +7% for CYTD).
  • The Magazine market saw a decline in spending, with the Beauty, Grooming & Personal Care product category falling by -20.5% for Q2.
  • Newspaper spend grew +3% YOY for the CYTD and was up slightly for Q2.
  • Three of the top 5 Newspaper titles showed growth for Q2 2014, with Tribune Media Services as the highest increase.
  • Revenues in both The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times decreased, contributing to June's -6% drop for the Newspaper industry.

SMI Radio Market

  • Radio experienced a +2% increase for the 2014 CYTD and -3.8% decrease YOY for Q2.
  • Clear Channel Media and Entertainment, the share leader among SMI's top Radio owners (30%) saw a -3.9% decline for Q2 over last year.

SMI Out of Home

  • Out of Home ad revenues had a -17% decrease for the CYTD.
  • Computers & Software saw a +17% increase CYTD YOY, positioning the category as the new leader.

About SMI's Ad Spend Data

SMI's data enables Media Owners to track their growth and competitive advertising share against a sizable aggregated benchmark. SMI's proprietary methodology captures approximately 75 percent of total agency spend from the booking systems of the world's largest media agencies, offering timely, unparalleled visibility of global macro and micro market dynamics. SMI data is aggregated spend from agency groups in the United States.

The SMI data access enables better and faster analytics to feed strategy, negotiations and fuel growth.

CAVEAT: With approximately 75 percent of total agency spend, SMI data does not capture 100 percent of US Ad Spend. However, it does provide strong directional data for measuring market trends, enabling clients to more quickly and accurately analyze their businesses and react to those changes.

Media Contact
Laura Thorburn
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