Programmatic Advertising in Europe: A Decade of Growth and Evolving Challenges

IAB Europe's 10th Annual Attitudes to Programmatic Advertising Report reveals the latest market insights and trends shaping the digital ad landscape.

The leading European-level industry association for digital advertising, IAB Europe, has released its highly anticipated 2024 Attitudes to Programmatic Advertising Report. Now in its 10th year, the report provides a comprehensive overview of programmatic adoption, key drivers and barriers, and emerging trends across Europe.

Compiled by IAB Europe's Programmatic Trading Committee, the survey garnered insights from 254 respondents, including advertisers, agencies, publishers, and ad tech vendors across 31 markets. With over half managing annual advertising budgets exceeding €1 million, the report provides a crucial benchmark for both the buy-side and sell-side of the industry.

As the European digital ad market, valued at €96.9 billion, continues its shift towards programmatic-first approaches, the survey highlights steady growth in programmatic spending across display, mobile, video, and emerging channels like Connected TV (CTV) and retail media.

Key Findings:

Programmatic investment continues to rise: While growth in display programmatic investment is maturing, over a quarter of advertisers now allocate a large majority of their display budgets programmatically. Agencies are leading this shift, reporting a 68% increase in programmatic buying, with mobile also seeing a rise in agency-side programmatic investment.

CTV and Retail Media are becoming key drivers: Agencies are reporting a significant rise in CTV and Retail Media investments, signaling new strategies in this maturing programmatic landscape.

AI and addressability lead growth areas for 2024 and beyond: AI and CTV top the list of growth areas for advertisers and agencies. As the industry prepares for a post-cookie world, first-party data and contextual targeting remain focal strategies for driving audience insights.

Media quality, brand safety, and privacy remain key challenges: Rising media quality concerns and the phase-out of third-party cookies highlight a significant shift for the buy-side, with 31% of advertisers prioritising brand safety and media quality as key barriers to investment. Agencies and publishers are increasingly prioritising transparency and media quality to maintain audience trust.

Sustainability gains momentum despite economic pressures: Sustainability remains a strategic focus, though progress varies across stakeholders. While the majority of agencies prioritise sustainability, commitment among advertisers has declined from previous years. Only 20% of advertisers report concrete progress towards Ad Net Zero (ANZ), indicating an industry-wide need for better alignment on sustainability standards. Despite this, innovation in data science and machine learning is driving carbon transparency and efficiency, paving the way for more sustainable programmatic advertising in a privacy-first environment.

Expert Insights:

Cadi Jones, SVP Europe at Index Exchange, a contributor to the report, highlighted CTV as a pivotal growth area: "The rise of Connected TV is transforming the programmatic advertising landscape. With an increasing number of viewers opting for streaming platforms, we're seeing a major change in how advertisers connect with their audiences. As we continue to innovate in this space, leveraging programmatic solutions will be key to unlocking the full potential of CTV, driving both engagement and performance for the industry at large."

Emmanuel Josserand, senior director, brand, agency & industry relations, FreeWheel, also contributed to the report and commented on the sustainability findings: "It's encouraging to see that, compared to last year, environmental sustainability is less of a barrier to programmatic investments and continues to be a focus for all media players. There is a lot of great work being done and initiatives, such as the IAB Europe's sustainability committees and working groups. We should continue to engage in constructive dialogues and action plans, making sustainability a seamless part of our programmatic ecosystem. This willingness to make progress, despite challenges, will ultimately lead to a more sustainable future for all."

The 2024 Attitudes to Programmatic Advertising Report underscores the evolution of programmatic advertising across Europe over the last 10 years, as it becomes increasingly sophisticated and integral to advertisers' strategies. The findings provide critical insights that will drive future programmatic growth and investment, particularly as the industry navigates challenges surrounding privacy, data, and sustainability.

The full report, including accompanying graphs, can be downloaded from IAB Europe's website [here](https://iabeurope.eu/knowledge_hub/iab-europes-attitudes-to-programmatic-advertising-report-2024/).