Over a quarter of global DOOH now programmatic. Can India keep pace?

Over a quarter of digital out-of-home (DOOH) campaigns globally over the last 18 months have included a programmatic component (PrDOOH), finds a new study conducted by a London-based firm VIOOH - a supply-side platform specialising in digital outdoor media. 

The study, which was conducted among 1,200 advertisers in core markets – such as the US, Australia, the UK, France, Germany and Brazil – also forecasts that this share is set to rise at an average of 35% over the next 18 months, up from 31% from last year’s survey. 

The researchers also found that in core markets, more than a third of marketers are reallocating budgets from other digital channels to programmatic DOOH – a trend that has grown by four percentage points year-over-year. Nearly 44% of respondents have also reallocated budgets from traditional to programmatic OOH.

India doesn’t figure in the VIOOH study but industry leaders say that PrDOOH’s pie in India is barely 1-2 per cent of the total out-of-home expenditure (Rs 4,100 crore annually). 

This huge gap can’t be simply downplayed by calling it a “Western world” thing because Brazil is also a developing country like India. 

Not just Brazil, but the entire Latin America market, which includes Mexico, Argentina and Columbia, is adopting PrDOOH at a fast pace by focusing on technology and digital infrastructure. These markets are set to grow further as global providers like Vistar Media and JCDecaux have expanded their operations in the LatAm region and are making global inventories available to local media owners, ad executives say. 

Why is India lagging? 

PrDOOH combines the flexibility of digital platforms with the scale of traditional out-of-home (OOH) media, allowing brands to connect with audiences in real time using data. However, most advertisers in the country are still relying heavily on traditional assets such as static billboards. 

“India lags in digital infrastructure and awareness, two prime reasons why prDOOH is thriving in core markets but not here. While India has made significant progress in improving internet access and rolling out smart city initiatives over the last few years, the ecosystem needed for large-scale prDOOH is still not fully in place,” says Junaid Shaikh, Managing Director, RoshanSpace.

India has seen a significant increase in digital screens, from 70,000 to 200,000 within a year. Despite this growth, DOOH still represents only about 10 per cent of the country’s out-of-home (OOH) advertising market, a stark contrast to the 40 per cent in the United States and the 90 per cent in China. 

“Digital billboards are on a rise, but the integration of real-time customization into campaigns is still in its early stages. The infrastructure to change digital ads based on live data is not yet fully established, limiting the flexibility and engagement that prDOOH can offer,” Shaikh responded. 

One of the standout benefits of prDOOH is Dynamic Creative Optimization (DCO), which allows brands to adapt their messaging in real time based on factors like weather, location, or the time of day. For example, an ad promoting hot beverages can be dynamically triggered on a rainy day, in fact in markets like the UK, 95 per cent of marketers are already exploring or using DCO to maximize campaign relevance, Shaikh noted. 

Neither advertisers nor media owners interested

Advertisers in India are largely uninterested in PrDOOH, primarily due to a lack of metrics. Besides, there is a low return on investment (ROI) for media owners in smaller cities, where digital boards are scarce. These challenges discourage investment in PrDOOH, according to Dipankar Sanyal, CEO of Platinum Communications.

Many OOH media owners are also sceptical about embracing PrDOOH due to their not-so-good experiences. “Some media owners have had positive experiences, while others have not. OOH, although a part of the media strategy, faced difficulties being included in typical media plans due to a lack of data, metrics, and ease of execution,” says Rachana Lokhande, Flounder of Glocal Bridge and Partner at OOH Capital. 

“Also, a restrictive approach of only signing up with one tech platform has hindered the adoption of programmatic. Another factor is the traditional OOH buyers are not up-skilled to understand how DOOH works and how data can change the way things can be planned,” she added.

Trend picking up

However, the scene is changing gradually. With tech-enabled solutions on DOOH, data is now available by the hour and minute to understand audience profiles, allowing for dynamic microtargeting of audiences, says Lokhande. “Programmatic enables the use of all this data to include the medium in the Omnichannel buys for brands, making the medium more efficient and effective.”

She noted, “Brands can now use budgets smartly to micro-target audiences, understand the impact of ads, dynamically optimize the plays, and verify all information. Programmatic also enables access to digital budgets, improving the overall OOH market share.”

Gulab Patil, founder and CEO of Lemma, a multinational firm dealing with DOOH, has a different point of view. He denies that Indian media owners lack interest in PrDOOH. “As a first-hand witness to the Indian DOOH market's change, I've seen the meteoric ascent of programmatic DOOH. The sheer volume of campaigns we've delivered throughout the years demonstrates the expanding need. It's been fascinating to see this trend develop, fuelled by both existing clients' enthusiasm and the rush of new ones looking for programmatic solutions. The advent and integration of numerous DSPs has revolutionized programmable DOOH, making it more accessible and efficient than ever before,” Patil shared. 

“This shift has cemented programmatic DOOH's status as the preferred technique for advertisers seeking tailored and impactful out-of-home marketing. So, it's reasonable to conclude that there is no lack of desire, although there may be some reluctance to test the medium in certain cases, as is the case with any new media that's introduced,” he noted. 

Potential of 12.5 % CAGR

The future for prDOOH in India is promising, with expected growth at a 12.5% CAGR from 2024 to 2032, says Junaid Shaikh. 

“With the government's push for new airports, malls, and other smart city programs, we foresee a major increase in the number of displays in the years ahead. India currently has around 115,000 DOOH screens, and this number is expected to increase. This growth will be aided by continuing smart city projects, improved infrastructure, and reliable and affordable internet and Wi-Fi,” says Gulab Patil. 

What needs to be done?

There’s a need to build more awareness about how prDOOH can provide greater flexibility, better targeting, flexibility and more efficient use of ad budgets through automation. Without this shift, prDOOH adoption in India will remain slow. 

According to Shaikh, to match the pace of global markets, we need to invest in digital infrastructure, wider deployment of large-format digital screens in urban areas, educate advertisers and encourage them to reallocate ad budgets from traditional media to digital outdoor formats. 

According to Patil, “The government simply needs to create a consistent and compatible ad-serving policy for digital media on roads and public areas, as this changes frequently and is not uniform across states/cities.”

Lokhande bats for transparency and measurement. “Platforms need to offer transparency. Media owners need to offer measurements of their assets. Agencies need to build talent who can understand the digital ecosystem and talk the same language that brands and advertisers understand,” she shared. 

Experts share that measurement is paramount in today's advertising landscape. Advertisers have moved beyond only measuring impressions. Now, everyone wants to know how exposed vs. unexposed customers behave at the store level.

She also calls for widespread education across media owners and agency ecosystems. “Advertisers want it, and digital agencies are positive about bringing in DOOH inclusion. The gap lies at the lack of sync between the media owners, platform owners and the agencies. An industry-wide initiative for fast learning or upskilling is essential to bridge this,” Lokhande noted.