Streaming grabs 30% more upfront cash as TV ad market hits $33.8B, CPMs slide
Nearly $33.8 billion in upfront ad commitments closed this year, and streaming captured 30% more of that money than a year earlier, according to consulting firm Media Dynamics. Broadcast and cable keep losing ground, but the streaming shift lifted overall upfront spend by 9.1%. Pricing tells a different story: streaming CPMs dropped 4.9%, a steeper decline than the 4.2% drop for broadcast, meaning streamers won volume by cutting rates more than linear did.
Live sports now decides who wins the pricing fight. Disney, Fox, Amazon and Netflix each pointed to sports coverage for double-digit commitment growth, with Netflix flagging the 2027 Women's FIFA World Cup as a major driver for next year's upfront. Warner Bros. Discovery took the opposite hit: missing a big sports season this year contributed to sharp linear losses last quarter. Budgets built around sports inventory will keep commanding premium rates even as CPMs soften everywhere else, so planners chasing reach outside live sports have more room to negotiate.