Premium Programmatic Growth Projected To Only Increase Further (New Report)

Programmatic advertisers face a number of hurdles, from brand safety concerns to larger environmental ones.

But the more I’ve written about those issues, the more I see them as not only conquerable, but also responsible for advertisers ultimately achieving even better programmatic results.

Which makes Guideline’s recent data about the programmatic ecosystem all the more confirming, with a reported 47% growth YoY in the premium programmatic market for January through August 2024.

"When the COVID pandemic hit in March 2020, only a quarter of programmatic investment was bought via premium deals, with open exchanges dominating the programmatic landscape," says Alberto Leyes, Guideline ’s Head of Product Strategy, Data Solutions. “That number has since grown to 48% in the first 8 months of 2024 — posting +47% growth YoY — with a projected share of 50% by the end of 2024.”

Guideline found that digital media spend grew 16% in that same time period, with traditional media falling 5%. Additionally, DSP/SSP-transacted programmatic buying rose 26% YoY, which doubled the 13% pace of direct-sold insertion orders.

“This took place in the face of CPM price reductions in two out of three programmatic ad types,” MediaPost’s Ray Schultz writes. “You can be skeptical if you must. But this is in tune with other studies that show programmatic is the dominant market force.”