50% of DOOH campaigns now executed fully or partially via programmatic: Report

New Delhi: WARC’s Future of Programmatic 2025 report points to a stalled open programmatic marketplace, with growth increasingly concentrated within walled garden platforms. 

As signal loss continues to challenge targeting and measurement, advertisers are shifting towards cookie-free solutions, notably, first-party data and contextual strategies. Comscore data cited in the report shows that nearly half (48%) of marketers expect to rely primarily on cookie-free tactics by the end of 2025.

There is also a renewed focus on quality and brand safety, with advertisers seeking greater transparency and control over programmatic campaigns. The Association of National Advertisers (ANA) reported a 14% increase in spend efficiency on programmatic buys since 2023.

The report draws on internal insights and external data sources, and highlights several emerging trends, including the rise of curated marketplaces, advances in AI-powered brand safety tools, and the growing adoption of programmatic digital out-of-home (prDOOH) advertising.

WARC forecasts strong growth in areas like retail media, connected TV (CTV), and digital out-of-home (DOOH), outpacing more mature channels such as social media and search.

The report highlights the growing prominence of curated marketplaces, where inventory is packaged according to behavioural, contextual or interest-based criteria. Programmatic curation is gaining traction as advertisers seek more control and efficiency in open web transactions.

A 2024 Exchangewire study found that 41% of European marketers see curated deals as an opportunity to drive higher ROI. Meanwhile, Jounce Media reports that multi-publisher curated deals now make up nearly three-quarters of all programmatic bid requests, while open auction volumes continue to decline.

However, the report also notes that curated deals can introduce opacity into the buying process, with limited visibility into supply paths, data usage, and inventory packaging, challenges that affect both advertisers and publishers.

Brand safety remains a top concern for marketers. According to IAB Europe and the ANA’s 2025 Programmatic Benchmark, advertisers are prioritising quality placements and safer environments for their ads. New AI-powered tools are improving precision in evaluating digital content, offering a more proactive and nuanced alternative to conventional keyword blocking methods.

These tools offer the potential to shift brand safety strategies from reactive to predictive, enhancing trust and accountability across the ecosystem.

Programmatic digital out-of-home (prDOOH) is identified as a key area of growth, blending the broad reach of traditional OOH with programmatic targeting and measurement capabilities. While OOH spending has seen limited growth over the past decade, DOOH spending rose 15% in 2024 and is forecast to grow a further 14.9% in 2025, reaching $17.6bn globally.

According to WARC Media, around 50% of all DOOH campaigns are now executed fully or partially through programmatic means. Features like dynamic creative optimisation (DCO) are becoming more common, allowing brands to tailor messaging based on factors such as weather, footfall and time of day.