Digital ad spend on tablet devices rockets by 400% according to latest IAB figures
Digital ad spend on tablet devices his increased by 400 per cent as the boom in mobile and tablet devices continues, according to fresh figures from the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB).
Figures: Tablet use - and spend - is up
The figures for 2013 showed that advertisers spent a record £6.3bn on internet and mobile advertising in 2013, up by 15.2 per cent from £5.45bn in 2012. Tablet advertising alone increased from £6.8m in 2012 to £34.4m, while mobile advertising grew by 93 per cent from £529m in 2012 to £1.03bn in 2013.
In addition, social media advertising across digital grew by 71 per cent to £588.4m, while on mobile alone it was up to £221.8m last year, meaning mobile now accounts for more than a third (35 per cent) of digital social media advertising.
More than one in four British consumers now owns a tablet while over a third of people accessing the internet do so via a tablet. According to comScore figures, tablet ownership increased by 63 per cent in 2013 to 17.9 million, while YouGov data showed that six in 10 tablet owners now say tablets are their “go-to” device to browse the internet at home.
Tim Elkington, director of research and strategy at the UK’s Internet Advertising Bureau, said: “Digital advertising continues to grow at impressive rates simply because marketers are becoming more responsive and savvy to the increasing ways people consume content across different devices.
“However, there’s still a lot of work for the industry to do when it comes to tablet advertising. Spend on ads designed specifically for tablets is growing fast but it’s still a very small part of the pie – despite the increase in tablet ownership, and the crucial role they play in people’s internet use at home.”
He added: “The tablet has moved from the offices of early adopters to the nation’s living rooms and advertisers should be following suit.”
Video also showed a strong rise in advertising, with the channel accounting for 18 per cent of all online and mobile display advertising, an increase of 62 per cent year-on-year to £324.9m.
A rise in display advertising across desktop and mobile was attributed to boosts from video and social media. Spend on the channel grew by 22 per cent in 2013 to £1.86bn, and with a 180 per cent rise in display advertising on mobile, the platform now accounts for 23 per cent of total digital display advertising.
Classified advertising was also up, rising by nine per cent to £886.5m and accounting for 14 per cent of digital ad spend.
Dan Bunyan, manager at PwC, the company that conducted the report for the IAB, said: “Mobile’s huge rise is down to advertisers taking advantage of key developments in the way people use their mobile devices – particularly social media platforms.
“Mobile is now more of a story-telling tool for advertisers rather than just an information device. Almost half of mobile ad spend is accounted for by TVs biggest advertiser categories – consumer goods and entertainment brands – which is testament to how important mobile has become for brands.”
Paid-for search spend also increased, rising 14 per cent to £3.49bn in 2013.