That's according to a new study from eMarketer, which has upped its forecast of mobile ad growth this year from 47% to 80%, to $2.671 billion. The main reason, says the researcher, is Google's much better-than-expected success with mobile search ads.
eMarketer reckons Google’s U.S. mobile ad revenues hit $750 million last year, for a market share of almost 52%. “Google has translated its dominance of overall online and desktop search advertising into dominance of mobile search and mobile advertising at a rapid pace,” eMarketer principal analyst Noah Elkin said in a statement. “Given the pace of this market’s expansion, eMarketer’s estimates for mobile search may still be on the conservative side.”
Apple, which has its iAd mobile ad program, still lags far behind. EMarketer says that's mostly because iAds don't include search ads, but it has also been clear for some time that advertisers aren't all happy with Apple's tight control over what they can do with mobile ads. Apple grossed about $92.4 million last year for a 6.4% share of U.S. mobile ad revenues. Millennial Media earned $90.9 million, or a 6.3% share.
In mobile display ads, the situation is far more competitive. EMarketer says Google has almost 25% of the market, while Apple has 18% and Millennial has just under 18%. Elkin said that's an indication that the race is too early to call: “Both Apple and Millennial have healthy, $90-million-plus US businesses, while companies with larger international footprints such as InMobi, Amobee, and JumpTap shouldn’t be discounted either.”
What's not too early to call is the certainty, like it or not, that mobile devices are finally arriving as a major channel for advertising.
