The outdoor advertising has made a contribution, through the minimum fee, of 1,651 million euros to cities over the years between 2014 and 2023 through 326 competitions called by city councils and public companies for the advertising exploitation of urban furniture and other supports .
It is estimated that the total contribution of outdoor advertising could reach 2.3 billion euros.

It is one of the main data collected in the fourth edition of the study “The contribution of Outdoor Advertising to cities”prepared by the Association of Communication Companies-La Fede. To carry it out, the calls for competitions published in all official bulletins – of the European Community, the State, the Autonomies and the city councils – and the Public Sector Contracting Platform have been analysed.

Study considerations

It should be noted that the economic contribution of outdoor advertising has been established considering only the minimum operating fee established in each of the contests. The Fede points out that the contribution is greater because the winning companies also contribute a percentage of the advertising turnover made on the media.

The association points out that the study has been carried out on the contests called. It does not establish whether they were subsequently awarded, annulled or declared void. He also points out that it is difficult to establish the total economic contribution of outdoor advertising to cities. The study calculation does not include, for example, investment in the design or maintenance of street furniture equipment.

He also explains that in the ten years analyzed Urban furniture competitions from cities such as Madrid, Zaragoza, Barcelona, ​​Bilbao, San Sebastián and Vitoria-Gasteiz are included. Those from other large cities, such as Valencia, Seville, Malaga and most of the provincial capitals have not been considered as they were not summoned in the period of analysis. Furthermore, some large advertising exploitation concessions do not establish a minimum fee.

The contribution of outdoor advertising

All in all, the study provides relevant data on the economic contribution that outdoor advertising makes to municipal budgets and other public entities. Among them, an average of 33 urban furniture exploitation contests per yearwith an average budget of 6.9 million per contest.
Furthermore, the study points out that the average concession amounts to 5.5 years.

Breaking down the data, it is noted that the year with the largest budget for exclusive competitions was 2015, with 406 million euros. It is followed by 2018, with 347 million euros; and in third position is the year 2022, with 201.9 million euros.

The average contribution per year -result of dividing the total budget of each contest between the years of the concession- varies depending on the contested contests. For example, in 2015 it exceeded 36.2 million euros; while in 2018 it was 33.6 million. Instead, in 2017 it was only 2.5 million.
The average contribution in the years analyzed is 21.9 million euros.

The analysis also indicates that the annual fee or Minimum average contribution per year from outdoor advertising According to the bases of the contests analyzed, it is 119 million euros. However, the real contribution would be higher, since only the ten competitions with the largest budget must contribute a minimum annual fee of 109 million euros.
The Fede estimates that the real annual contribution is around €250 million annually.

On the other hand, according to La Fede, the average contribution per contest is 6.9 million euros, although there are differences between the different years. In 2015 it exceeded 20.32 million; and in 2018 the 11.99 million; while, for example, in 2016 it was 3.49 million; and in 2023 1.53 million.
The explanation, the association explains, is found in the great differences between the different contests, with a small number of large budgets, and many contests with a much smaller fee.

Contribution through competitions

Focusing on the contests, the one with the largest budget was the exploitation of urban furniture in Madrid, convened in 2015 with a duration of twelve years and 400 million euros minimum fee. In second place is the bus shelters and poles project, also from Madrid, from 2014 and with a minimum budget of 150.8 million euros. In third place is that of the interurban line canopies of the Community of Madrid, from the year 202 and with 121.3 million euros.

Analyzing the contests taking into account the highest annual fee, stands out from that corresponding to the management of urban furniture in Madrid, with 33.3 million euros. It is followed by urban furniture in Barcelona, ​​with 13 million; and that of canopies from the Community of Madrid, with 12.1 million euros.

These high-budget competitions also represent the highest proportion of total financial contribution: The first ten contests with the largest budget account for only 3.1% of the contests; but they add up to a budget of 1,004 million euros, which represents 60.8% of the budget.

On the other hand, La Fede also highlights the lower budget contests. At the top is the Villarrobledo marquee company, for 15 years, with a minimum fee of 49.61 euros. This is followed by the installation of billboards on the highway from Guadalupe to Navalmoral de la Mata, for five years, and a canoe for 173 euros.

On the other hand, the longer duration concession corresponds to that of road planning and advertising posts in Ronda, for 25 years and with an estimated contract value of €3,787.6. In second place is a taxi shelter in Algarrobo Costa, for 20 years, and does not establish a minimum fee for advertising exploitation.

As information of interest, the study also includes the contribution per person of outdoor advertising, which amounts to 33.8 euros. The figure is obtained by considering the 1,651 million euros of total contribution divided among the 48.8 million inhabitants of Spain.