Nordic Programmatic DOOH Adoption Outpaces Global Average

​VIOOH, the leading premium global digital out of home (DOOH) supply-side platform, has released research into the state of programmatic DOOH (pDOOH) in the Nordic region, covering Finland, Sweden, Norway and Denmark. The findings reveal that the Nordics are rapidly adopting pDOOH, with 32% of all campaigns in the past 12 months including pDOOH, surpassing the 2024 global average of 28%. This share is expected to rise to 34% by 2026.

The Nordic edition of VIOOH's State of the Nation, produced in collaboration with research and strategy agency MTM, surveyed senior advertiser and agency professionals across the Nordic region who are joint or sole decision-makers for advertising within their business who have purchased pDOOH in the past 12 months or are digital buyers open to purchasing it.

Now in its sixth year, this new report marks the first time the research has focused specifically on Finland, Sweden, Norway and Denmark - four markets identified as having strong potential for pDOOH growth.

Shifting budgets

Almost all Nordic marketers (99%) plan to invest in pDOOH over the next 12 months, making it the most planned-for channel in the Nordics, with social media (94%) and digital out-of-home (91%) following closely behind. This surpasses the 95% of marketers in leading global markets who had similar intentions. With 90% of Nordic marketers believing pDOOH offers some of the most innovative opportunities in media today, this strong commitment is unsurprising.

Nordic marketers expect their pDOOH investment to grow by an average of 37% over the next year, significantly higher than the 28% global average reported in 2024, indicating a strong desire to capitalise on the growing momentum of pDOOH in the region.

A significant portion of the budget for pDOOH is expected to come from existing digital budgets, with 89% of marketers reallocating funds from these channels, while 72% plan to move money from traditional channels such as press or radio.

Digital-first approach

The Nordics are leading with a digitally integrated, programmatic-first approach to DOOH. Across both brands and agencies, pDOOH in the Nordics is primarily bought by digital or programmatic teams (83%), closely mirroring the 2024 global trend of 74%.

Nordic marketers are significantly more likely to plan pDOOH as part of wider digital activity - 83% do so, compared to just 35% in key global markets in 2023. This mindset is especially prevalent among media agencies (87%), though advertisers (80%) are close behind.

Nordic marketers value pDOOH for its flexibility across brand campaigns. An impressive 86% of Nordic marketers consider pDOOH important for brand campaigns, placing it just above the 2024 global average of 85%, and ranking it as the second-most important branding channel, behind only social media (91%).

When it comes to performance marketing, 83% of Nordic marketers consider pDOOH an effective channel - just below the 2024 global average of 91%. What's particularly impressive is how quickly pDOOH has earned its place as a credible performance channel in the Nordics - ranking just behind established powerhouses like social media (92%) and display (84%).

Reflecting their digital-first mindset, Nordic marketers are especially likely to integrate pDOOH with other digital channels - primarily social media (89% for brand, 89% for performance), as well as display (85% for brand, 81% for performance) - further reinforcing its role in integrated, omni-channel strategies.

Sustainability shaping the future of pDOOH

Currently, around a quarter (24%) of Nordic marketers rank the sustainability of a channel among their top three investment considerations - placing it on par with scalability (24%) and alignment with campaign objectives (24%).

Promisingly, Nordic marketers already recognise sustainable or eco-efficient reach as one of pDOOH's standout attributes. In fact, 64% cite sustainability as a key benefit of pDOOH - second only to ROI generation and its ability to activate flexibly under the right conditions (both 65%).

“The Nordic region is demonstrating impressive momentum in pDOOH adoption, with marketers embracing its digital integration and performance capabilities. With Nordic marketers anticipating investment growth of 37% over the next year, well above the global average, we're seeing a region that recognises pDOOH’s strategic value and is positioning it at the heart of digital-first media strategies,” said Jean-Christophe Conti, chief executive officer at VIOOH.

See the full report here.