A new study by leading analyst house, Juniper Research has revealed that annual global advertising spend on mobile devices is expected to reach $105 billion by 2019, up from an estimated $51 billion this year.
The research – Digital Advertising: Online, Mobile & Wearables 2015-2019 – suggests that this increase in advertising spend is in large part attributable to an attitude shift amongst brands and retailers who now use mobile as a core channel for consumer engagement.
African mobile commerce and advertising is already having explosive growth in only a few short years. In Nigeria the e-commerce market is developing rapidly and is estimated to be worth $10 billion annually already.
Juniper argues that the ability of smartphones to deliver targeted, personalised and timely advertising – allied to the media-stacking trends amongst consumers – means that mobile advertising offers both high visibility and high response rates.
‘Big Data’ fuels concerns around consumer privacy
Meanwhile, the research highlighted increasing concerns around consumer privacy, with advertisers keen to exploit ‘Big Data’ analytics to gain an insight into consumer online and offline behaviour, including purchasing patterns.
It observed that when the device user’s information is shared for advertising purposes, without their prior consent, consumers may feel a violation of their rights has occurred. It therefore stressed the need for consumers to be ‘opted-in’ to any data sharing to avoid both potential litigation and adverse publicity for the brands.
