Half of all media time is now spent with user-generated content
50%
user-generated content media time
StatPaid Media
50% of media time is now spent with user-generated content. A brand with no face in creator content is absent from half the market's media consumption.
Source
Meta, Top Trends 2026 - Marketing trends to help you win in 2026 (2026)
Meta
Meta, Top Trends 2026, Trend 10, s. 14; GWI, 2025
More from this source
StatAd spend is forecast to grow three and a half times faster than the economy in 2026StatThe link between ad spend growth and economic growth has brokenStatMore than three quarters of searches now end without a clickStatSearch referrals fell across every major vertical in 2025, with travel and media hit hardestStatNearly half of shoppers now research through AI assistants rather than searchPrincipleAI moves discovery earlier into social and pushes search later into pure transactionStatMore than three quarters of marketers still measure effectiveness on clicksWarningClick-based attribution sends a third of spend to sales that would have happened anywayPrincipleThe doom loop: tighter attribution targets buy easier conversions, better metrics and slower growthStatShort-form video now accounts for 95% of all time spent on socialWarningStatic performance assets compete for the 5% of social time that is not short-form videoStatShort-form video has overtaken both streaming and broadcast TV in weekly time spent