Commerce Media Surpasses TV Globally – AI Search Challenges
“`html
Commerce Media to Surpass TV Ad Spend in 2025: A New Advertising Landscape
Table of Contents
Global advertising spend is undergoing a important shift, with commerce media poised to overtake traditional television advertising for the frist time next year. This change reflects a broader trend of digital dominance, driven by measurable performance and evolving consumer behavior.
The Rise of Commerce Media
According to WPP Media’s latest advertising forecast, released Sunday, commerce media is projected to reach $178.2 billion in global ad revenue in 2025. This figure surpasses the estimated $171.1 billion for global television advertising. Commerce media, encompassing advertising within retail platforms like Amazon, Walmart, and increasingly, social commerce, is gaining traction due to its direct link to sales and robust data analytics.
| advertising Category | 2024 (Estimate) | 2025 (Forecast) | 2026 (Forecast) |
|---|---|---|---|
| commerce Media | $155.8 Billion | $178.2 Billion | $205.6 Billion |
| TV Advertising | $168.9 Billion | $171.1 Billion | $174.3 Billion |
| Search Advertising | $222.5 Billion | $244.9 Billion | $263.7 billion |
Kate Scott-Dawkins, global president of business intelligence at WPP Media and author of the report, emphasized the appeal of commerce media, stating it is becoming “very, very attractive” to brands due to its performance-driven and measurable nature. This contrasts with traditional advertising methods where attributing sales directly to ad exposure can be challenging.
Search Remains Resilient, AI Integration on the Horizon
Despite the growing prominence of AI-powered search, traditional search budgets are proving remarkably resilient.WPP Media forecasts search spend to reach $244.9 billion in 2025, a 10.2% year-over-year increase, with similar growth anticipated for 2026. This suggests that while AI is changing *how* people search, it isn’t yet substantially impacting *where* marketers allocate their budgets.
Madison & Wall., another analyst firm, echoed this sentiment, finding that search budgets are “largely insulated from AI-related disruption.” Their research indicates that AI hasn’t meaningfully impacted search revenues for established platforms like google and Bing.
WPP Media plans to incorporate AI search revenue into its “intelligence” category starting in 2026, acknowledging the emerging ad opportunities from platforms like OpenAI and AI-enhanced features within existing search engines. However, current data suggests AI is primarily accelerating product discovery rather than diverting ad spend from traditional search.
Forecast Upgrades Reflect Market Strength
Both WPP Media and Madison & Wall. have revised their advertising spend growth forecasts for 2026 upwards, citing a stronger-than-expected performance in the current ad market. This positive outlook suggests continued investment in advertising across various channels, despite economic uncertainties.