Standard Media Index

New Zealand's media agency market has finished the 2025 calendar year period softer, with December ad spend down 8.5% year-on-year to $82.7 million as advertisers pulled back in a cautious final quarter, Guideline SMI data shows.

But the longer-term picture shows a market still finding growth, particularly in Outdoor and Radio, with calendar year ad spend back just 1.6% to $1.09 billion compared with 2024.

Key highlights are as follows:

• In December, Outdoor was again the highlight with ad spend +3.7% despite a 38.3% fall in Street Furniture as the market adjusts to new commercial arrangements in that market

• Radio bookings lifted 3%

• Cinema scored double digit percentage growth, +12.7%

• But FTA TV ad spend fell 27.9%, offset in part by a 9.4% increase in Subscription TV ad revenues

• Digital bookings fell 8.7% although extra late Programmatic bookings should improve that decline

• Newspapers also gained, up 28.0% in December thanks to a large jump in National Newspaper ad spend

• For the full 2025 calendar year, Outdoor gave a strong account of itself, rising 11.6% to $214.7 million

• Radio also enjoyed a solid CY, up 9.4% and Newspapers jumped 8.4%

• But it was a tough Q4 with total bookings back 5.6% although Outdoor grew 3.7% over the quarter while Radio edged up 3.0%

• The FYTD period tells a similar story with the market back 3.6%, but Outdoor (+7.5%) and Radio (+7.0%) continuing to attract increased investment.