Global ad spend on linear TV falls to $143.9bn as streaming accelerates

New Delhi: Global spending on linear television advertising has dropped to $143.9 billion in 2025, representing just 12.4% of total ad expenditure, according to WARC’s latest Global Ad Trends: The changing shape of TV report. This compares with a 41.3% share in 2013, reflecting the continued shift in viewing and advertising spend towards streaming and connected TV (CTV).

The report highlights that while linear TV still commands more than three-quarters of overall TV investment, spend has declined by 27.5% in absolute terms over the past decade, or 50.8% when adjusted for inflation. By contrast, CTV ad spend is forecast to reach $39.9bn this year, with growth largely concentrated in the United States.

Alex Brownsell, Head of Content, WARC Media, said, “There’s no doubt that Linear TV’s role is slowly waning, both in viewing and ad spend, as audiences shift to the expanding ecosystem of CTV. However, new players such as Big Tech and retail media sellers hope TV can help them win brand dollars, and smart TV makers are creating their own ad-funded TV channels.

“As consumers move seamlessly from one form of video to the next, advertisers are being challenged to reappraise how they define TV, be it a specific type of video ad format, a media owner or simply the largest screen in the home, with important implications for planning and buying, frequency management and measurement.”

Regional and generational shifts

The transition from linear to streaming is most pronounced among younger audiences. In the United States, viewers aged 16–24 watch an average of 81 minutes of linear TV daily, compared with more than two hours among older demographics, GlobalWebIndex data shows. In the UK, Ofcom data indicates that linear TV’s weekly reach has declined by ten percentage points since 2021, now standing at 73.8%.

The report notes that inflation in linear TV costs is accelerating, particularly in the US, Germany and the UK, while some markets, including Brazil and Japan, record lower CPMs today than in 2012.

YouTube’s challenge to broadcasters

YouTube is positioning itself as a competitor to traditional TV, generating $36bn in ad sales across devices in 2024 , more than all four major US broadcast networks combined. In the US, YouTube’s share of viewing on TV devices reached 12.8%, according to Nielsen. Broadcasters are also using the platform to distribute content, while UK measurement body Barb has begun tracking YouTube channel viewing on TV sets.

Fragmentation and measurement challenges

The changing definition of TV is highlighted as a concern for advertisers, with formats, platforms and devices fragmenting the market. WARC notes that this creates risks around measurement, as buying models remain divided between linear and digital specialists.

The report suggests the next decade of TV will be shaped by data convergence, the influence of device manufacturers, new creative approaches, and programmatic buying. The integration of retail data is expected to have a particular impact, with global retail media spend forecast to surpass the total TV market by 2026.

Small businesses are identified as a growth opportunity for CTV, with smaller brands currently allocating an average of 9% of ad budgets to TV, compared with 38% among the largest global advertisers.