UK Programmatic DOOH Spend to Rise 41% as it Becomes Core to Omnichannel Planning

by ExchangeWire PressBox on 19th Mar 2026 in News

Today, (19th March, 2026) VIOOH, the leading premium global digital out-of-home (DOOH) supply-side platform, released its annual research into the programmatic DOOH (pDOOH) market.

The UK findings show that pDOOH is firmly established as a mainstream channel within the UK's digital media landscape, with 34% of campaigns featuring pDOOH in the past 18 months, up from 31% in 2024 and in line with the global average. Looking ahead, UK marketers expect this to rise to 47% of campaigns in the next 18 months, as the channel continues to win share of both budgets and planning attention.

UK marketers are forecasting an average 41% increase in pDOOH spending over the next 18 months, notably higher than the 32% growth projected in 2024, pointing to accelerating momentum as advertiser confidence matures.

The budget funding this growth is increasingly coming from within the wider digital ecosystem. Among those planning to increase pDOOH investment, the majority expect to reallocate budget from other digital channels (including DOOH), up sharply from 2024.

The UK's shift towards digital and programmatic planning of pDOOH has been striking. In 2026, the majority of UK marketers say pDOOH has been planned as part of broader digital/programmatic activity in the last 12 months, an increase since 2023, and ahead of the already substantial uplift seen across core markets (UK, France and US).

Looking ahead: data, DCO and deeper expertise

The next phase of UK pDOOH growth looks to be shaped by more intelligent and data-driven activation. Almost three quarters of UK respondents plan to make greater use of data in pDOOH planning over the next 18 months, slightly ahead of the global average. Two-thirds say they will increase their use of dynamic creative optimisation (DCO), and the same share plan to invest in building their pDOOH expertise more broadly.

Curated marketplaces are also expected to play a key role in further adoption of the channel, with more than half of UK marketers saying they would consider buying through curated environments in the next 18 months. By simplifying access to fragmented inventory under a single deal structure, curation addresses two of the UK market's leading priorities: supply-path efficiency and supply chain transparency, both cited as important investment criteria by over half of respondents.

"The UK remains one of the most advanced pDOOH markets globally, and the 2026 findings show it continues to evolve rapidly. The channel is no longer a specialist buy, it is now a standard part of digital advertising and omnichannel media planning, increasingly assessed against the same performance benchmarks as other digital channels. The forecast 41% increase in UK pDOOH investment over the next 12 months reflects genuine confidence in what the channel delivers. Combined with the fact that over two thirds of UK marketers now associate pDOOH with driving sales and performance, this indicates that the perception of this channel has fundamentally shifted among UK marketers. The next chapter is about unlocking better data, smarter measurement and curated access to inventory, taking pDOOH from a strong-performing channel to a must-have," said Jean-Christophe Conti, chief executive officer at VIOOH.

See the full report here: viooh.com/sotn