Three US technology giants accounted for two-thirds of every pound spent on advertising in the UK last year, according to Press Gazette analysis of new Advertising Association and WARC data. The findings reveal that total UK ad spend grew by 6.4 per cent in 2025 to a record £46.7bn, yet nearly all the new capital flowed to Google, Meta, and Amazon.
Together, this trio accounted for approximately £31bn of the total market. The data underlines why publishers are pivoting aggressively toward subscriptions, video, and events revenue whilst lobbying for stronger regulation to rebalance an ecosystem currently dominated by a handful of platforms.
The big three
Google took the lion’s share of UK advertising, leveraging its dominant position in search alongside additional revenue from YouTube and adtech services. Press Gazette estimates Google’s total UK advertising income reached £21.5bn in 2025.
Meta followed in second place with an estimated ad spend of £6.5bn on its platforms, whilst Amazon secured the third spot with £3bn. Social media ad spend, which includes YouTube, was the fastest-growing category measured by AA/WARC, rising 21 per cent to £11.5bn. Retail media, a segment largely dominated by Amazon, was the second-fastest-growing area, rising 17.5 per cent to £3.8bn. Search advertising also grew, by 5.8 per cent to £17.9bn.
In stark contrast, ad spend across the entire magazine and news industry fell 5.1 per cent year-on-year to £1.6bn. Both print and online revenues declined across every publishing segment: national newsbrands, regional newsbrands, and magazines. Specifically, magazines fell 5.1 per cent to £445m, national newsbrands fell 4.6 per cent to £695m, and regional newsbrands dropped 6 per cent to £412m.
A colonial economy
Press Gazette editor-in-chief Dominic Ponsford suggests that in commercial media terms, the UK has essentially become a “colony of America”. He notes that while Google and Meta offer effective services, they benefit from monopolies that would not be tolerated in other aspects of the UK economy.
“My best estimate is that two-thirds of everything spent on advertising in the UK – £31bn – goes to Google, Meta and Amazon (in that order),” says Ponsford. “Meanwhile, news publishing (the thing that underpins democracy) is being squeezed further and further out of the picture”.
The long-term shift is particularly stark when compared to historical data. In 2007, the UK advertising market was worth £17bn (around £29bn today), of which £7.1bn was spent with newspapers and magazines (£12.2bn today). By 2025, that figure for all magazines and newspapers — across both print and online — had withered to just £1.5bn.
Regulatory and safety crossroads
Google and Meta are currently facing the prospect of tighter regulation in the UK under the Digital Markets Competition and Consumers Act. They stand accused of abusing monopolistic positions in search and social media, whilst failing to fairly reward professional content creators.
Ponsford also highlights a significant disadvantage regarding legal liability. Publishers must verify all content and advertisements they present, whereas tech giants are largely protected by the Electronic Commerce Regulations 2002 and Section 230 in the US. This lack of liability, Ponsford argues, provides a “helping hand to criminals”.
“At Meta, around 10% of the £6.5bn a year spent with it on advertising in the UK is fraudulent,” Ponsford states. “So it makes at least £650m a year in the UK alone from criminals who steal people’s identities to con trusting consumers out of their savings”.
The most hijacked person for these scam ads is Martin Lewis, who recently confirmed to Press Gazette that, despite legal action against Meta in 2018, the issue is “worse than ever”. Ponsford argues these figures prove the desperate need for regulation under the new Act and for publishers to secure alternative revenue streams.
