Brands went out with a bang this December as the holidays dawned and the sun set on 2023.
Platform spend prevailed, industries made indelible marks, advertisers gave it their all, and we have the CTV data to put an end to any doubts about the year's finale.
Top platforms
December represented the apex of 2023 for grand total spend with $1.13B grossed across our top 10 platforms to close out the year. But importantly, we counted $1.04B in spend across the top eight platforms that we’ve been tracking since 2022.
It’s the first and last time in 2023 that this threshold has been crossed for that group alone—warranting auspicious consideration about the trajectory of CTV in 2024.
December 2022-2023: Ad spend by platform YOY
Source: Vivvix
Leading industries
2. Retail
3. Food and beverage
Restaurants landed back in our top spot for the first time since October (and before that, April) with record industry spend for 2023. At just under $150M total, advertisers dedicated another $52M or 54% more to CTV in December than they did in November.
Additional allocation to Pluto TV was instrumental in this upswing—an increase of $33.5M or 329% month-over-month.
Financial and insurance was in the fourth slot, just as it was in November. But total spend went up by $12.9M as advertisers in the industry placed $6.9M more on Hulu this time around, $3.7M more on Pluto TV, and $3.3M more on MAX.
Games, toys and sporting goods spend may have gone down overall, but advertisers did increase their Discovery+ investment by $1.76M—which makes a major difference when contextualized as 508% more dollars than before.
- CTV spend by any one industry reached a record high for 2023 with restaurants at $150M total in December and a 54% month-over-month increase
- Financial and insurance spend increased by $12.9M from November
- Games, toys and sporting goods advertisers spent 508% more on Discovery+ over November
December 2023: Industry rankings
Source: Vivvix
Top spenders
2. Burger King
3. Little Caesar's
Amazon remained our top CTV advertiser from November to December, upping their total spend by 16%. They chose to increase their Vix investment by 465%, Tubi by 279%, and Peacock by 144%.
They were the second-highest spender in our top 20 across all three of these platforms, and although less than half of those 20 spent on Crackle, Amazon was the platform’s number one investor.
As for Burger King, they increased their spend on Hulu by about 371% month-over-month, making them the advertiser with the greatest buy-in on the platform of any in our ranks in December.
Furthermore, they funneled an additional 529% of their money into Pluto TV. Considering their 170% growth in overall spend across our top 10 from November, this all checks out.
Little Caesar’s presents an interesting case as they did not broach our top 20 advertisers in November but their grand investment in Pluto TV defined this ascent as they placed 81% of their overall spend there in December.
Source: Vivvix
Chocolate manufacturer Kinder entered our top 20 advertisers in December with a clear Paramount+ preference. In fact, they managed to spend more on the platform than any other top 20 advertiser, regardless of their 15th-slot rank by total spend. This feat cost them 65% of their spread of dollars across the 10 platforms.
- Amazon increased their overall CTV spend across our top 10 platforms by 16% from November to December and they were the top Crackle investor
- Burger King increased overall spend by 170% with an exceptional 529% additional investment in Pluto TV
- Newcomer and 15th in overall spend Kinder was the top Paramount+ spender, placing 65% of their total across our top 10 on the platform
Streaming vs. linear
Burger King re-entered our combined AVOD/linear rankings after slipping away in November, increasing their AVOD investment from just under half (47%) to just over (52%).
The pendulum swung on Apple’s AVOD dedication as it shrunk from 24% in November to 4.5% in December—a noteworthy switch-up considering their previously high-ranking AVOD spend. Pfizer made a similar but less drastic decision—scaling from 26% to 15%.
St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital entered our top 20 combined AVOD/linear spenders despite not contributing to AVOD, and Progressive also maintained their place on the list though their AVOD spend dwindled to none.
December 2023: Top 20 brands with highest combined streaming and linear spend (ranked from most to least in AVOD spend)
Source: Vivvix
Where's the white space?
Despite such mountainous spend, there were still gaps left by brands in December that advertisers could contemplate filling.
Retail advertisers spent $145M for the holidays, which signified a minute decrease from November of about $3M. However, significantly less dollars flowed into Pluto TV—$14M or 33.4% less.
We also saw a drop in apparel—more than $10M or 48% less. Advertiser spend was down $7.6M on Hulu, and advertisers opted out of Vix completely.
As we mentioned, total CTV spend by games, toys and sporting goods advertisers decreased—by $8M, with $4.7M less funneling into Pluto TV and $3.16M less into MAX.
Speculations of rising investment during this period marked by heavy spending aside, personal care products advertisers went for $8M less in CTV expenditure, and electronics advertisers backed off by a $6.6M margin.
Next up, keep your eyes peeled for our 2023 CTV wrap-up as we reflect on a year like no other for our top platforms, industries and advertisers.
CTV/STREAMING INTEL
Each month, we’ll share the latest insights including spend, trends, and creative in one of the most competitive landscapes to date. Stay tuned as we #FreeTheData.
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