MANAGED SERVICE PROVIDER FOR ADVERTISING ON THE TFL WEBSITE AND TFL GO APP

Descriptions

Transport for London (TfL) is seeking to appoint an experienced Managed Service Provider to oversee its online advertising concession and optimise revenue across its digital estate, specifically the TfL website (tfl.gov.uk) and the TfL Go mobile app. These platforms are central to TfL's digital engagement strategy, serving millions of Londoners and visitors with real-time travel information, journey planning tools, and account services.

The appointed partner will be responsible for managing and optimising digital advertising operations, including programmatic advertising via platforms such as Google Ad Manager 360, delivering high-quality direct sales, and identifying new monetisation opportunities. The service must balance commercial performance with user experience, brand safety, and full compliance with TfL's advertising policy and regulatory obligations.

Scope of the Opportunity

TfL is seeking a partner to provide a fully managed service for advertising on both the TfL website and TfL Go app:

TfL Website (tfl.gov.uk)

Based on the monthly averages from October 2024 to September 2025, the TfL website has delivered:

~6.6 million unique users

~15.5 million visits

~62.7 million page views

~41.4 million ad impressions

Additional performance insights:

Approximately 60% of pages are currently monetised, with scope to expand

Device breakdown: 76% mobile, 22% desktop, 2% tablet

Advertising formats include skins, billboards, leaderboards, mobile banners, and MPUs

Ad operations run via Google Ad Manager 360

Revenue model: Predominantly programmatic, with direct sales contributing an average of 24% of total revenue over the 12-month period from October 2024 to September 2025

Future enhancements under consideration include high-impact programmatic formats, as well as section-based and geo-specific sponsorships

TfL Go Mobile App

~1.4 million monthly unique users (as of Sep 2025)

~11.2 million monthly visits (average Oct 2024-Sep 2025)

~57 million monthly page views (average Oct 2024-Sep 2025), rising to ~77 million in recent months (Jul-Sep 2025)

Currently features Promoted Places, a venue tenancy model - the app's sole advertising format to date

Commercial opportunities include banner ads, splash ads, native formats, contextual advertising, geo-targeted notifications, and first-party data monetisation (subject to GDPR compliance)

Google Ad Manager SDK integration is required to enable programmatic display advertising