For many industries, 2020 has slowed down business and consumer spending. On the opposite end, mobile has seen booming demand which in turn has bolstered some industries. App Annie’s newest report showed that interstitial ads are pushing major growth for mobile ad placements. Meanwhile, Pubmatic revealed that mobile header bidding in programmatic advertising has jumped 20% compared to last year. To learn more, read on for this week’s Mobile Monday!
Increased In-app Engagement Drives Programmatic Growth
Pubmatic’s recent quarterly report stated that app publishers have embraced programmatic advertising because of the incremental time spent on mobile devices. Private marketplaces (PMPs), which allow publishers more control over ad inventories, gained momentum after spending began rising again in April. Although it initially fell in March due to the pandemic, mobile advertising recovered more quickly than desktop on PMPs from February to June. Desktop ads only grew 2% as opposed to mobile which surged 391% during the period. Mobile web also showed strong growth with a 52% increase.
Advertisers have invested more in mobile header bidding in programmatic advertising in Q2 2020, leading to a 20% jump year-over-year. This pushes mobile’s share of total header bidding to 59%. In-app placements are largely driving growth with a 26% increase over last year. Pubmatic’s report also included other research to highlight trends in mobile usage. With more time spent at home, users are discovering more ways to utilize apps. According to App Annie, mobile users are engaging with a wider variety of apps than they have in the past, with the top 10 game and non-gaming apps having a smaller share of total usage this year than in 2016.
Interstitial Ads Push Mobile Ad Growth
The latest report from App Annie includes data from a major ad network that saw its volume of iPhone ad placements grow 70% in the United States from January 2020 to June 2020. During this time, interstitial ads grew by 205%. By June, interstitials represented 54% of all ad formats that were served on the ad network, a significant jump from the 30% share it had in January. Despite a reduction in marketing budgets across industries, mobile’s unmatched reach and engagement are leading to strong growth in mobile ad placements.
App Annie’s report also points out the opportunities available to brands due to the increased playtime of mobile gamers. Mobile users are seeking out new games to play and as a result, both hyper-casual and core gaming are growing. The average user in the U.S. increased their number of games played by 13%. The highest increases were seen in India, Russia, and Indonesia at 35%, 30%, and 26% respectively. With consumers hungry for more games, this is the time to strike for both user acquisition and brand advertising campaigns.
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