
2019 was a watershed year in the continuing evolution of the media landscape. With the first ATSC 3.0 tuners and TVs just over the horizon, broadcasters started ramping up efforts to prepare for Next Gen TV, hoping to better compete as potentially game-changing streaming services (Disney , among others) made their bid to disrupt the marketplace. In the audio space, podcasting hit a critical tipping point, exceeding 50% listenership for the first time, while smart speakers found their way into three times as many US households as they did just two years ago. Here are just a few media trend highlights from 2019.
Digital-Linear Convergence The term digital-linear convergence' has been on the lips of industry experts for several years. But with the first Next Gen TVs just around the corner, the conversation took on added urgency in 2019. Next Gen TV (ATSC 3.0) will bring 4K resolution, improved sound quality, and interactive features to viewers via over-the-air (OTA), broadcast TV. What makes Next Gen TV exciting for broadcasters is the ability to combine OTA with broadband internet, allowing for interactive features, customizable content, and addressable advertising, in addition to the potential for traditional TV broadcasters to add their own streaming services, providing opportunities for streaming advertising.
For the convergence of digital and linear to make sense to both those buying and those selling advertising, a common currency for ad sales is necessary. And that common currency is impressions. The term impression-based selling has also been floating around the industry for a long time, with Comscore and Nielsen already offering impression data. Advertisers have long understood the value of impression-based transactions. Now, on the eve of Next Gen TV, linear TV broadcasters are finally, if somewhat grudgingly, moving towards acceptance.
Podcasting Hits a Tipping PointAccording to Edison Research, 51% of the US population had listened to at least one podcast in 2019, up from 44% in 2018. Adoption typically accelerates once penetration of any new technology exceeds 50%, so if that pattern holds true, the news is good for podcasters - and podcast advertising. The IAB's 2018 Podcast Ad Revenue Study estimates that podcast revenue will reach $678-million in 2019 and $1-billion by 2021. A correspondingly high degree of podcast advertising effectiveness shouldn't come as a surprise - household income exceeds $75k annually for 45% of monthly podcast listeners, compared to just 29% of the total population.
Perhaps significantly, 2019 was also the year Spotify transitioned from a music' company to an audio' company, with their acquisitions of high-profile pod producers Gimlet Media, Anchor, and Parcast making them a company to watch in the podcast space. In the 12-24 age group alone, monthly podcast listening on Spotify grew from 32% in 2018 to 53% in 2019 (Edison).
Smart Speakers Make Inroads, But Twenty-three percent of US households now own at least one smart speaker, up from just 7% in 2017. These numbers demonstrate significant growth that might excite advertisers who see the potential for a new audio advertising channel, but smart speakers offer cookie-less tracking; the data is 100% owned and controlled by the hardware manufacturers. And those manufacturers represent some of the usual FAANG suspects, with Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and Apple HomePod devices already making up just over 87% of the market, and new and improved versions of Facebook Portal poised to grab their share (Variety).
Big Names Jump into Subscription StreamingThe big news in streaming for 2019 was the launch of Disney and AppleTV in November. Disney's $6.99/month service offers a mix of original content and inventory from the studio's massive back-catalog, which includes Star Wars, Marvel, and Pixar, in addition to Disney classics. AppleTV , less expensive at $4.99/month, is relying on original content exclusively - and paying top dollar for some big names to create that content, including Steven Spielberg, JJ Abrams, and Oprah Winfrey, to name just a few.
More new streaming services won't be far behind, with NBCUniversal's Peacock and HBO Max set to launch in April and May, 2020, respectively. And earlier this year, CBS and Viacom merged (again) in a $12-billion deal, allowing them to combine their content inventories for streaming via CBS All Access, Showtime Online, and Pluto TV. What those combined inventories/services will look like, and whether the $15-billion they're spending on original content will be enough to compete with the likes of Netflix, Disney, and Apple, remains to be seen.
While the growth of streaming services has been a boon for content creators, it has also led to speculation about market saturation and an expansion of the trend toward cutting the cord' to include cutting the subscriptions'. If consumers start to feel nickel-and-dimed by paying for too many subscriptions, they may revert to traditional, over-the-air TV, with its oh-so-attractive price point (free). And that could very well mean a boon for ATSC 3.0/Next Gen TV - and its potential for significant revenue from both linear and streaming TV advertising.
But that's a topic for another day.
For press inquiries, contact media@wideorbit.com.
More from WideOrbit
18/06/2025
By Brian Thoman, WideOrbit Chief Technology Officer...
11/06/2025
In today's rapidly evolving media landscape, advertising is more complex than ever. As media consumption spans linear, streaming, on-demand, and digital pla...
30/05/2025
By Brian Thoman, WideOrbit Chief Technology Officer...
13/05/2025
More than ever, radio stations today are challenged to provide the best experien...
16/04/2025
Last month at Borrell Phoenix, Devlin Jefferson, WideOrbit SVP, Professional Services, teamed up with Brock Berry, CEO and Co-Founder of AdCellerant, to present...
27/03/2025
At Borrell Phoenix earlier this month, Devlin Jefferson, WideOrbit SVP, Professional Services, had the privilege of moderating a panel discussion on the importa...
27/01/2025
As 2025 begins, it's the perfect time to reflect on the milestones and trends that defined the media industry in 2024. At WideOrbit, last year brought excit...
05/11/2024
Local TV broadcasters face growing complexity in managing multi-platform campaigns. The demand for precise audience targeting and efficient workflow processes i...
30/10/2024
By Brian Thoman, WideOrbit CTO...
08/10/2024
The convergence of linear and digital media presents both opportunities and challenges for traditional TV and radio broadcasters. Robust linear and digital syst...
03/10/2024
With the WNBA's semifinal playoff round underway, and the first gender-equal...
20/08/2024
With National Radio Day on August 20 and Radio Commercials Day on August 28, this is the perfect time to reflect on the profound impact radio continues to have ...
13/08/2024
WideOrbit worked with Comscore to make person-level demographic data available i...
26/07/2024
The 2024 Paris Olympic Games present a unique and exciting opportunity for local...
23/07/2024
WideOrbit is celebrating a milestone anniversary in 2024 - 25 years of revolutionizing the media advertising industry. Founded in 1999 with the visionary goal o...
10/07/2024
In today's rapidly evolving media landscape, where consumers are inundated with content across multiple channels, advertisers must make strategic choices wh...
12/06/2024
In today's dynamic and hyperconnected digital landscape, media advertising h...
21/05/2024
WideOrbit congratulates Susie Hedrick, President and Managing Director, on her i...
17/05/2024
WO Traffic provides a solid foundation from which stations can manage, execute, and scale end-to-end ad trafficking and sales, both today and into the future. W...
06/05/2024
For years, radio stations have used on-premises servers to broadcast content and manage automation, traffic, and billing systems. As technology continues to adv...
16/04/2024
With the number of digital platforms continuously on the rise, a consolidated digital order management system is critical - now more than ever. WO Digital Hub u...
01/04/2024
WO Fusion is our next-generation, direct-sales platform, offering powerful new sales workflows and functionality for cross-media, multi-market selling across al...
20/03/2024
Television advertising has traditionally revolved around linear broadcasting, with advertisers purchasing airtime spots to reach a broad audience. But with shif...
06/03/2024
The world of advertising has undergone a transformative evolution. As a percenta...
31/01/2024
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is revolutionizing processes across virtually all industries, and the media world is no exception. In the constantly evolving media...
24/01/2024
While expectations are high for the anticipated increase in political ad spend for this year's elections, that influx of cash is just one of several trends ...
08/01/2024
WideOrbit began 2023 with the merger with the Lumine Group (TXSV: LMN.V) in February. Our partnership with Lumine builds on our 25-year foundation and contribut...
15/11/2023
In today's increasingly competitive landscape, radio broadcasters demand a strong, flexible, and user-friendly automation system to keep listeners engaged a...
16/10/2023
Traditional sales processes have presented significant challenges to broadcasters for years, involving highly manual workflows and high-touch, low-tech, back-an...
11/10/2023
WO Digital Hub is a consolidated digital order management platform for unifying digital ad sales, operations, execution, and finance across multiple properties ...
29/09/2023
We had a great time at the 2023 WideOrbit Connect User Conference and hope you did as well.
Here's a quick recap of the conference by the numbers.
Total r...
20/09/2023
Broadcast TV has long been proven to be the most effective medium for building brand awareness. It is also perceived as both difficult and expensive to buy, res...
06/09/2023
For brands looking to scale their campaigns, there's little question that br...
16/08/2023
Seamless integration of radio automation and traffic systems saves time and money WUIS-NPR, the University of Illinois Springfield's NPR radio station, is r...
09/08/2023
The latest release of WO Network, our flagship network ad sales and commercial operations platform, introduces key benefits to help cable and broadcast TV netwo...
07/08/2023
Purpose-built for the media industry to extend automation throughout the entire accounting cycle, WO Payments Suite helps media finance teams manage unique acco...
31/07/2023
As media consumption patterns evolve, advertisers want to buy TV, audio, and dig...
12/07/2023
WO Automation for Radio (AFR) Mobile is an iOS application specifically designed to enable control of WO Automation for Radio from anywhere.
Other systems usin...
05/07/2023
The hotly contested elections of both 2020 and 2022 drove record-breaking political advertising spend, demonstrating that TV remains the best choice for achievi...
05/07/2023
The latest release of WO Traffic, our flagship broadcast media ad traffic operations platform, introduces key benefits to stations and station groups, helping g...
14/06/2023
Radio stations are facing unprecedented cost pressures and need to deliver quali...
10/05/2023
With the increasing risk of a major recession, increasing interest rates, and historic inflation, brands are scrutinizing ad spend more closely than ever. When ...
26/04/2023
In today's rapidly evolving media landscape, streamlining the ad buying and ...
27/03/2023
For as long as we've been talking about linear and digital convergence, we h...
08/03/2023
Increasing audience fragmentation and shrinking ad budgets are hallmarks of toda...
06/03/2023
In today's media landscape, sales teams are challenged with generating impression-based proposals. Inefficient workflows slow execution time and new dataset...
27/02/2023
WO Omni helps broadcasters with bespoke regional requirements save time and increase revenue by centralizing cross-media sales, traffic, and billing operations ...
21/02/2023
The growing demand for omnichannel marketing campaigns highlights the need for automated marketplaces that provide brands and agencies with simplified access to...
08/02/2023
The convergence of traditional, over-the-air broadcast TV and connected TV (CTV) presents new opportunities for advertisers to engage with their audiences. CTV ...
06/02/2023
Scheduling templates in WO Automation for Radio offer improved efficiency to sui...