Redwood City, CA – May 15, 2019 – Premium digital technology company, PubMatic, today released its first Quarterly Mobile Index (QMI) of 2019. The report includes key trends, providing both advertisers and publishers with insights around mobile advertising, leading to smarter programmatic strategies and future mobile opportunities.

In the US, digital ad spend recently passed $100 billion due to dominant increases in mobile advertising and video ad spend. As mobile advertising continues to evolve, it’s imperative for advertisers and publishers to both understand and prepare for these changes. PubMatic’s Q1 2019 QMI report reveals the top four trends to watch:

• Due to Video, Mobile Ad Spend Accelerates – The promise of 5G has the potential to bring powerful and interactive content and experiences, changing the way and speed at which video is consumed.
• Mobile In-App Header Bidding Still Needs Time to Grow – Despite recent popularity and publishers’ pressure to optimize mobile in-app header bidding, lack of knowledge has led to new obstacles in adoption.
• Safety Practices Take Center Stage as Fraud Rises – The majority of additional programmatic display dollars over the next year will go to private setups like PMPs.   
• The Opportunity for Growth in APAC is Massive – Marketers in APAC are becoming more knowledgeable in programmatic strategies, illuminating the need to adapt automated ad strategies in other parts of the world.

For the first time, consumption across mobile devices will overtake television, as video viewing habits continue to impact the fight for attention. This has led marketers to spend $29 billion globally on mobile video advertising. The appearance of 5G makes focusing on mobile all the more important, as the expectations arise that consumers, advertisers and publishers will see a dramatic change in how video is consumed. This will lead to more seamless, complex video ad experiences for mobile users.

“Mobile advertising continues to see monumental increases in spending, while still making strides towards greater transparency and returns, which is hugely important for publishers and advertisers. That said, the industry is only now learning how to properly take advantage of in-app header bidding, which has led to more obstacles,” explained Paulina Klimenko, SVP, Corporate Development and GM, Mobile at PubMatic. “In order to find success, app publishers should consider the differences in header bidding between desktop and in-app and how the implementation efforts will impact their dev teams.”

Despite mobile advertising’s massive growth, spend within Android apps is down 17% year-over-year, while iOS has seen an increase of 68%. Most recently, Google blocklisted 6 apps from a major app developer for large-scale fraud, reflecting a trend of ad fraud schemes targeting GooglePlay apps. To avoid fraudulent apps and sophisticated invalid traffic impressions, marketers’ tactics have shifted inventory to in-app PMPs.

Programmatic, the automated buying and selling of digital media,  is an intrinsic aspect of the advertising industry in North America and Europe, but there’s still room for growth in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region. As mobile connectivity and mobile phone users has grown in APAC, the region’s advertisers and agencies are seeing the benefits in targeting mobile-first consumers through automated buying, though at roughly different paces.  With 359 million new mobile users coming in the next half decade, there is a greater urgency to adopt automated ad buying strategies in other parts of the world.

Download the full Q1 2019 Quarterly Mobile Index Report here.

ABOUT PUBMATIC’S QUARTERLY MOBILE INDEX

By analyzing over 13 trillion advertiser bids flowing each month through PubMatic’s platform, we can observe real-time developments in the mobile space that may allude to broader digital industry trends. We can then compare this information to other published data to further understand changes in the mobile landscape. At PubMatic, we are committed to providing best-in-class mobile tools and services, and believe that information sharing is crucial in aligning the digital industry towards best practices and, ultimately, growth in mobile advertising.

Note that directional data might not be comparable with prior reports. This press release and the QMI may contain inaccuracies, and the QMI is based on operational data that has not been audited or reviewed by a third-party. They may contain forward-looking statements about future results and other events that have not yet occurred. Actual results may differ materially from PubMatic’s expressed expectations due to future risks and uncertainties. PubMatic does not intend to update the information contained in this press release or the QMI if any information or statement contained herein or therein is, or later turns out to be, inaccurate. 

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N6A: pubmatic@n6a.com