Global mobile ad spend set to overtake desktop in 2017: Report

A recent ad spend forecast by UK-based  digital marketing communications company Dentsu Aegis Network says that, globally, mobile ads will overtake desktop ads in 2017. Also, digital advertising spends will overtake television in 2018. "In 2018, mobile ad spend will grow further to account for a total of $116.1 billion. With smartphone subscriptions set to reach 4 billion by 2025 and about a third of consumers reporting that their smartphone is their primary source of entertainment, we can expect to see this trend continue to strengthen," the report says.
It predicts that digital's share of total media spend is predicted to reach a 37.6 per cent in 2018 (up from 34.8 per cent in 2017), versus 35.9 per cent for television (down from 37.1 per cent in 2017), amounting to a total value of $215.8 billion.

"We are reaching a tipping point in ad spend now as digital overtakes television, mobile overtakes desktop and paid search overtakes print," said Jerry Buhlmann, CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network, commenting on the latest forecast. " At the same time, the challenge for brands is to ensure that they are ready to embrace the potential of new innovation," he added.

Ad spends of print media, which have been on a downward trajectory for a while now given the digital disruption will see slight improvement and will likely fall to a 13.8 per cent share of total spend in 2018, down from 15.1 per cent in 2017.

The forecast report which is based on data from 59 markets across the Americas, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Middle East and Africa reveals that global ad spend growth will fall from 4.8 per cent in 2016 to 3.8 per cent in 2017. However, it adds that the conditions are set to improve in 2018 with forecast growth in ad spend of 4.3 per cent. Ad Spend Forecasts - June 2017 also says that advertising spend in emerging markets continues to outpace developed economies.

"Ad spend growth in India is forecast to grow at 13 per cent in 2017, while China is the second largest market in the world by share of advertising spend-remaining the only emerging economy to feature in the top five largest ad markets," it adds.