Time spent streaming surges to over 40% in June, the highest Share of TV Usage in the history of Nielsen’s The Gauge
The month of June ushered in another blazing summer of streaming. According to Nielsen’s June 2024 report of The Gauge™, time spent streaming soared to 40.3% of total TV usage, topping the previous single category record set by cable in June 2021 (40.1%) and notching the highest share of TV ever reported in The Gauge. Across streaming platforms, four notched double-digit usage growth including Disney+ (+14.8%), Tubi (+14.7%), Netflix (+11.8%) and Max (+11.0%), all with 20% or more attributable to younger viewers. Additionally, most streaming services exhibited shares that were near or equal to previous platform-bests, while YouTube and Tubi both set high watermarks with 9.9% and 2.0% of TV, respectively. Read more from Nielsen.
Nearly half of Americans, including two-thirds of Gen Z, have purchased a product from creator-generated content
Nearly half of Americans (48%) have purchased a product they saw featured in creator-generated content — sometimes also called influencer content — on an entertainment app or social media platform. The findings are from a new consumer sentiment survey commissioned by NCSolutions (NCS). “Given the growth of creator-generated content and the quality and size of the audience that these social/entertainment platforms attract, brands have an opportunity to complement their branded marketing campaigns with these influencer-created ads,” said Deirdre McFarland, chief marketing and communications officer of NCSolutions. “As brands seek to drive incremental sales, building loyal long-term customer relationships with younger buyers is a strategy that enables continued growth. Advertising on social or entertainment platforms is an effective way to connect with and engage Gen Z buyers and create lasting value for the brand.” Read more from NCSolutions.
Retail sales up 3.3% in June as consumers respond to deals
In June, retail sales in the segments covered by Retail Dive rose 3.3% year over year, with e-commerce spiking 4.8%, according to numbers released Tuesday by the U.S. Department of Commerce. The National Retail Federation, which now uses credit card data rather than the government’s numbers, found a similar 3.07% year-over-year growth in retail sales excluding restaurants, auto sales and fuel. While not a blockbuster month for retail, the results beat most expectations, analysts said. That shows that consumers continue to be resilient despite inflation and high interest rates. Read more from Retail Dive.
Pure Play AI ad spending accelerating
In a new, comprehensive nearly 200-page report, analysts at New Street Research outline how AI is influencing almost every facet of the ad industry — from creative to ideation to media and marketing analytics. And while they downgraded initially bullish estimates for ad-supported AI agents, they estimate pure-play AI enabled experiences will surge to billions of dollars over the next few years — at least initially due primarily to its impact on search, especially Google’s AI Overview ads. “We expect AI Overview advertising to generate $17 billion by 2027,” the New Street Research analysts forecast in the just-published report, “The ROI on Gen AI Primer.” The analysts estimate Google AI Overview ad revenue will be $1.7 billion in 2025, $6.7 billion in 2026 and $16.9 billion in 2027. Read more from Media Daily News.
TNT on the clock as NBA Board of Governors approves media deals
The NBA on Tuesday night took the next significant step toward securing its new round of media-rights deals, as the league’s Board of Governors voted to approve the offers from Disney, Comcast and Amazon. Speaking to the press in Las Vegas shortly after 7 p.m. local time, NBA commissioner Adam Silver confirmed that the league owners had signed off on the papered bids, which together amount to an 11-year, $75.9 billion juggernaut. But beyond the revelation that the board has voted to accept the offers, Silver wasn’t at liberty to add much in the way of detail. With NBC onboard, the NBA will air up to three weekly primetime games on a big-reach broadcast network, while the addition of Amazon would put the league in front of a global subscriber base of 200 million consumers, virtually overnight. Read more from Sportico.
