5.3 bn mobile rich media ads were wasted in Q1 2015
About 5.35 billion wasted rich media ad impressions on mobile devices in the first quarter of 2015 alone, a Sizmek report highlighted. This is due to mobile defaults as ads served static images in place of rich media in cases when the Flash-based ad format was not supported.
The report also highlights that while mobile ads tend to get more clicks than desktop, the interaction rate (the total number of interactions out of the total number of served impressions) for desktop ads is nearly five-times higher than mobile. This can be attributed primarily to Flash mobile ads defaulting to static ads, where a click is the sole opportunity for interaction.
“Advertisers are using more rich media on mobile to reach potential customers, but they’re wasting a lot of opportunities. By converting rich media ads to HTML5, brand advertisers can ensure that their ads are seen as intended, thus increasing return on their ad spend,” said Andy Kahl, Director, Research at Sizmek.
According to the research, HTML5 ads outperformed Flash ads by 400 per cent in terms of interaction rate. While rich media ads that relied on Flash defaulted over 98 per cent of the time, those in the HTML5 format only defaulted at a rate of 8.3 per cent.
The report highlights that 12 per cent of advertisers never served a successful rich media ad to a mobile device. The rate of rich media failure was much lower on desktop inventory, where 60 per cent of advertisers default at a rate of less than three per cent.
