TV ad revenues slide in 2020 despite late surge; BVOD up 40%

News 8 Feb 2021 - 2 min read

TV ad revenues slide in 2020 despite late surge; BVOD up 40%

By Nicola Riches - Contributing editor

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Tags: TV BVOD Media investment Think TV Kim Portrate

Despite a late surge in the final quarter, total TV ad revenues declined by almost 11% in 2020. However, BVOD's growth trajectory continues, with strong viewership and revenue gains.

What you need to know:

BVOD ad revenues continue major gains, up 53% in second half and 40% overall.
Broadcast takes big first half hit as advertisers braced for Covid.

Ad revenues for the TV market suffered a marked decline across 2020, falling 10.7 per cent from $3.86bn in 2019 to $3.45bn.

The latest TV figures, issued by ThinkTV, mirror market conditions which saw a $1.1bn fall over the course of the year in media agency bookings as advertisers took flight during the pandemic.

Despite a late surge in December 2020, when revenues climbed 15.3% on a quarter-on-quarter basis, the six-month figures from June to December 2020 (up 0.5%) were broadly in line with 2019’s equivalent numbers, when the market recorded a 5.9% decline.

The marginal six-month growth was aided by Metro TV income which gained 0.6% and a 52.7% boost in BVOD ad spend. Regional FTA copped a loss of 4.8% from June to December 2020. Full year metro FTA income reached $2.34bn, back 10.5%. Regional FTA income dropped 15% to $593m for the year, though SBS figures are not included in ThinkTV's tally.

Growing consumption of content across BVOD platforms 7Plus, 9Now, 10 Play, Kayo and Foxtel Now delivered ad revenue of just over $216m for 2020, an overall increase of 40%, with $133m of that figure landing in the final six months of the year.

ThinkTV CEO Kim Portrate focused on the positives.

“BVOD revenue is performing exceptionally, in line with incredible audience growth," she said. "Post- Covid, the medium has established a new baseline for viewership with more than 1.6 million hours of BVOD content being consumed every week with more and more Australians – advertisers and consumers alike – embracing the platform.”