RMNs are a bright spot in programmatic digital display ad spend, but won’t make up for dip in walled garden spending

In 2023, we predict that walled gardens will lose share of total programmatic digital display ad spending for the first time since 2017, when we first began forecasting this segment, according to our Programmatic Ad Spending Forecast Q3 2023 report.

Retail media networks (RMNs) will be a bright spot in the gloom. By the end of 2023, RMNs share of total programmatic digital display ad spend will have doubled since 2018 as retailers like Amazon, Walmart, and Instacart grow their share of the digital ad market.

But retail media’s success is not enough to compensate for the dip in spending with other walled gardens … yet. Still, walled gardens will still represent the majority of programmatic digital display ad spending for the foreseeable future.