Android overtakes iOS in mobile ad revenues: Opera Mediaworks
Mobile advertising data from first quarter (Jan-Mar) of 2015 shows Android not just leading in traffic, but now revenue, holding a 45.8 per cent share of total revenue generated on the platform, Opera Mediaworks discloses in its ‘State of Mobile Advertising’ report.
In terms of monetisation potential, or the ratio of revenue to impressions, iOS is still the leader, with iPad generating more than 4X its traffic volume in Q1. For mobile video ads only, iOS outperforms Android for both traffic and revenue, and video completion rates for Apple users are higher (87.1 per cent vs. 76.7 per cent).
Also, social networking and games generate the most revenue, according to the study. Traditionally, music, video and media has been the traditional revenue leader on the Opera Mediaworks platform, but this quarter — for the first time — both social networking and games trumped the category.
Country-wise, in emerging economies, mobile advertising is in a high-growth phase. While the US is still the top producer of impressions and revenue, there is notable year-over-year traffic growth in Asia with 19 per cent, the Americas with 61 per cent and Africa at 32 per cent.
It is evident that mobile video advertising is booming. In just one year, video-ad impression share increased sixfold, from 2.5 per cent in Q1 2014 to 15 per cent, a year later in Q1 2015. And, video accounts for more than half of all global revenue generated on the platform.
However, some regionsare adopting mobile video at a faster rate. US mobile users, for instance, view more video ads than any other country; the video market share for US is 2.5X its share of total user reach.
Furthermore, different types of advertisers, too, are showing preference for mobile video units. Movie and Television Entertainment spend the most money on video and use the most impressions; Food & Drink and Automotive brands are also using the format significantly more than other types of advertisers.
The report also detailed its special focus on Intelligent Audience Creation. It found that, in some regions, over 85 per cent of mobile ad campaigns are being targeted to an audience that was created specifically for that one campaign.
