A study from WARC, a specialist in marketing effectiveness, has found that a prolonged conflict in the Gulf region could threaten $39.6 billion (€34.3bn) of global advertising growth this year, and $93.7 billion over the next 18 months. James McDonald, Director of Data, Intelligence & Forecasting, WARC, and author of the research, commented: “As the […]

In recent years, Meta has transformed its proposition to advertisers through AI-driven automation, leading its advertising business to grow a forecasted 22.3 per cent to $240 billion (€204.9bn) this year, according to WARC Media. Serving ads across its mass reach ‘family of apps’ remains the foundation of its monetisation strategy. Its fast-growing ad business funds an aggressive AI innovation programme – which, […]

The Advertising Association and WARC has published a refreshed advertising Expenditure Report, following extensive collaboration with industry stakeholders to ensure advertising investment reflects the evolving media landscape. The latest report – drawn from a survey of media owners and the industry bodies that represent them – reveals that UK advertising investment increased by 6.4 per […]

A study from WARC has found that a prolonged conflict in the Middle East could threaten $49.9 billion (€43.2bn) of global advertising growth this year, and $93.9 billion over the next two years. A milder crisis still risks $19 billion this year, with residual impacts lasting well into 2027. James McDonald, Director of Data, Intelligence […]

The 2026 FIFA men’s World Cup will be the biggest in the tournament’s history, hosted across Canada, Mexico and the US with more matches than ever before. Yet, despite large audiences, rising rights fees and expanding sponsorship packages, the World Cup’s measurable contribution to ad growth appears to be weakening, finds WARC Media in its latest global […]

Netflix has entered a new ad-funded era. Subscription fees still provide the bulk of its revenue with ad revenue accounting for just 3 per cent of its total full-year earnings, but the streaming platform’s ad tier has evolved from experimental offerings to a primary engine for platform growth. According to WARC forecasts, the company is […]

The final quarter of 2025 revealed a divergence in performance across Big Tech platforms, with Amazon emerging as the clear outperformer against expectations while YouTube fell notably short, according to analysis from WARC Media. WARC Media’s Earnings Debrief is a new quarterly series that reviews the financial releases of Big Tech and compares their ad […]

WARC’s latest forecasts show that global advertising spend is forecast to grow 9.1 per cent in 2026 to $1.3 trillion (€1.1tn), doubling in size since the pandemic and equivalent to $150 spent on every person. The incremental growth is mostly being captured by digital platforms, not traditional channels. Almost 80 per cent of ad spend now […]

A study from WARC has found that global advertising spend is now on course to close out 2025 with growth of 8.9 per cent to $1.19 trillion (€1.6tn), an upgrade of 1.5 percentage points (pp) from WARC’s September forecast due to strong results from Big Tech platforms and a muted impact on global trade from […]

WARC has unveiled The Marketer’s Toolkit 2026, revealing five critical trends set to disrupt global marketing practices and reshape brand strategies in the year ahead. From the vanishing middle market and the creator investment gamble to the great escape, AI-driven zero-click journeys and shifting consumer milestones, the report provides marketers with insights to transform these […]