Indian AdEx to grow at 10.7% to reach Rs 91,641 crore, Digital expected to reach 30% of media mix in 2020: GroupM report

• Auto, e-commerce & mobile handsets to drive ad growth in 2020.
• Digital will account for 30% of the media mix and is estimated to take 65% of incremental adex in 2020.
• H2 is expected to bring in better growth on the back of government schemes, revival of the auto sector and a good monsoon.

India’s advertising investment is to reach an estimated Rs. 91,641 crore in 2020, according to GroupM futures report ‘This Year, Next Year’ (TYNY) 2020. India will continue to top the list as the fastest-growing major ad market in the world.

As per the report, India will continue to be the third-highest contributor to the incremental ad spends, only behind UK and USA while China drops to the fourth spot and the eight fastest-growing country with respect to ad spends across the globe.

Commenting on the findings of the TYNY 2020 report, Prasanth Kumar, CEO - GroupM South Asia said, “We expect the global adex to grow by 5.1%. The Indian media landscape is constantly evolving, will continue to witness the fastest growth of 10.7% to reach Rs 91,641 crore. While we expect sustained and stable investment across media in India, Digital is expected to garner 65% of incremental ad spends in 2020. In 2020, India faces challenges and uncertainties across sectors just like other markets. However, this also brings opportunities for brands to innovate because of which we see an evolving media stack. This will be propelled by greater use of technology and better content across media.”

Globally, Digital adex is growing on the back of other mediums losing out on spends. In the last four years, Indian adex has grown at a CAGR of 12.2%. In 2019, all media agencies had to revise their adex forecasts, owing to a slowdown in TV spending by advertisers. This was an effect of the general slowdown of the economy as well as the new tariff order.

However, 2020 is expected to bring in better growth rates for the industry, shared Sidharth Parashar, President - Investments and Pricing of GroupM India, who also stated that H2 is expected to bring in robust growth. Speaking about the factors that he think will aid the growth, Parashar said, “We expect government schemes to bring in some growth, however it will take one to two quarters to see action on ground and hence we will see the effects in H2. Revival of the auto sector is the second biggest factor. It is also critical from multiple aspects of economic growth.” He also added that good monsoons will help bring back positive sentiments.

Tushar Vyas, President Growth and Transformation - GroupM South Asia said, “There are multiple advancements happening in technology which is transforming digital advertising and other mediums. India being a diverse country, digital will keep growing, especially with the rise of content platforms and its availability in multiple languages powered by the growth of 3Vs. From a predominantly ‘at home’, ‘urban’, ‘English print’ & ‘TV’ consuming market, the Indian media consumer evolved to include ‘on the move’, ‘rural’ & ‘regional’ counterparts, experimented with digital media in the early 2010s’, adopted social media in middle of the decade and started consuming digital videos voraciously after 2016.”

Ashwin Padmanabhan, President – Partnerships and Trading of GroupM India, “While there are challenges and uncertainties in the market, it is a world of abundant opportunities in the content eco-system. This gives us vibrant options to reach and engage with consumers. It necessitates us to be agile, invest in new-age talent and technology while keeping an eye on the future. The key is to be always prepared while we are shaping the media landscape.”