Advertising for OTT (over-the-top) TV platforms in local markets has climbed an impressive 43% in 2019, growing from $598 million in 2018 to a projected $857 by the end of this year. A forecast of the next four years predicts even more exponential growth, with the potential to reach $2.13 billion.
In addition to this big win for OTT content, analysts believe linear television ad revenue will show little, if any, overall growth within that same time span (excluding political ad periods occurring every other year). Pew Research Center reports that, while over-the-air revenue did rise 12% in 2018, this could likely be attributed to the midterm election. Local TV as a whole suffered a steep viewership decline last year, with the exception of cable news.
More households are cutting the cable cord every day, making both OTT and mobile apps an essential method for reaching many users in your market. The shift from ratings to impression-based buying brings with it the opportunity to drive revenue from a much wider scope of audience touch points, from television screens to smart phones and tablets.
With this changing landscape in mind, it’s a wise choice for local television stations to make an OTT platform a part of their content strategy. For example, while many viewers turn to apps such as Netflix, Hulu, and YouTube TV for entertainment programming, 41% of Americans still prefer to consume local news through their television screen. Take advantage of these metrics by offering news updates through your own OTT platform, delivering quality streamed video that can be watched on-demand.
For more benefits to using Frankly’s OTT solution, check out this recent post.
