If you’ve recently cut the cable cord and are hoping you’ll get to skip the political ads this election cycle, you’ll sadly be mistaken, as ads are expected to be everywhere in the final eight weeks of the election, including on streamers and social media.
According to data provided by the political ad analytics firm AdImpact, the connected TV market brought in about $236 million in ad sales related to the presidential race this year through Aug. 23.
Spending on the connected TV category has increased since the last election, meaning you’ll most likely see an ad or two — or twenty — pop up while you’re streaming your favorite show on any of the top streaming services.
For the digital category, around $235 million was brought in from ads related to the presidential race, with Google and Facebook making up most of the sales, while broadcast brought in close to $473 million.
With both parties having nominated their prospective candidates, ad spending is only expected to go up with Democratic nominee Vice President Kamala Harris and GOP nominee former President Donald Trump both making a push for the finish line.
AdImpact estimates that overall spending on political ads for the 2024 election cycle to be as high as $10.7 billion.
Here’s how it’s estimated to break down:
AdImpact says that about half of all ad spending will be done on broadcast, followed by connected TV at 14%, and finally digital at around 12%.
One key change this election from years past is the increase in ads being sold for connected TV. This category includes streaming services like Peacock, Max, Netflix, and more.
Jaime Vasil Winkelfoos, the group vice president of candidates and causes at the ad tech firm Basis Technologies, shared with CNBC that it makes sense that connected TV is seeing an increase in ad sales, as it’s “where there is more engagement.”
With more and more streaming companies offering new ad-based subscription packages, it has also created possibilities where there weren’t any.
For example, streamers like Netflix and Disney+ have joined Hulu in offering cheaper subscriptions that come with ads. Now, Winkelfoos says there is more advertising inventory available for connected TV.