IAB Europe, the leading European-level industry association for the digital advertising ecosystem, has today (November 6th, 2024) released its highly anticipated 2024 Attitudes to Programmatic Advertising Report. Now in its 10th year, the report reveals the current state of programmatic adoption, key drivers and barriers, and emerging trends across Europe’s digital advertising landscape.

Compiled by IAB Europe’s Programmatic Trading Committee, this survey gathered insights from 254 respondents, including advertisers, agencies, publishers, and ad tech vendors across 31 markets. Respondents operate with both pan-European and global remits, with over half of them managing annual advertising budgets exceeding €1m (£837.9k). This comprehensive study provides a crucial benchmark for the buy- and the sell-side of the industry, helping to define the evolving strategies that will shape future investment and operations.

As the European digital ad market, valued at €96.9bn (£81.2bn), continues its shift toward programmatic-first approaches, the survey highlights a steady growth in programmatic spending across display, mobile, video, and emerging channels such as Connected TV (CTV) and retail media.

Key Findings: 

Programmatic investment continues to rise amid evolving channel strategies: Although growth in display programmatic investment is maturing, over a quarter of advertisers now allocate over a large majority of their display budgets programmatically, with agencies leading the shift, reporting a 68% increase in programmatic buying. Mobile also saw a rise in agency-side programmatic investment. 

CTV and Retail Media are becoming pillars of programmatic growth, with agencies reporting a significant rise in CTV and Retail Media investments, signalling new strategies in this maturing programmatic landscape.

Cadi Jones, SVP Europe at Index Exchange, a contributor to the report, highlighted CTV as a pivotal growth area, saying, "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." 

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.

Challenges with media quality, brand safety, and privacy: 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 as essential to maintaining audience trust. 

Quality assurance is a top priority, with advertisers calling for stronger standards in brand safety, ad fraud prevention, and media reliability to build confidence for sustainable growth. Additionally, data practices are evolving toward first-party data, but industry readiness for the shift from third-party cookies remains mixed. 

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, setting the stage for more sustainable programmatic advertising in a privacy-first environment.

This year’s report underscores the evolution of programmatic advertising across Europe over the last 10 years, as it becomes increasingly sophisticated and integral to advertisers’ strategies. With the industry set to confront challenges surrounding privacy, data, and sustainability, the findings provide critical insights that will drive future programmatic growth and investment.

Emmanuel Josserand, senior director, brand, agency & industry relations, FreeWheel, who also contributed to the report, 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, and 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 full report with accompanying graphs can be downloaded from IAB Europe’s website here.