Tag: IAB Australia

Australia – The Australian internet advertising market has grown 11.1% year-on-year to reach $16.4b spend for the full calendar year 2024 according to the IAB Australia Internet Advertising Revenue Report (IARR) which was released recently.

The report, prepared in collaboration with PwC Australia, reveals significant growth in digital advertising investment, with video leading the charge. Video ad spend surged by 19.6% year over year, reaching $4.5 billion in 2024.

Search and directories saw a 10.1% increase, totaling $7.2b, while classifieds grew by 8.3% to $2.6b. Display advertising (excluding video) experienced modest growth of 1.7%, reaching $2b, while audio advertising recorded a strong 17.8% increase, totaling $313m.

All video formats saw double-digit growth throughout 2024, with social platform video now accounting for more than one-third of total video ad spend—surpassing BVOD and other video formats. A key driver of this surge was increased investment tied to the Olympic Games in Q3.

Connected TV remained the dominant format for content publishers’ video inventory, capturing 51% of total expenditure for the calendar year—a record high—while mobile and desktop investment declined.

The breakdown of content publishers’ display inventory purchasing remained stable, with agency-driven internet advertising via insertion order holding at 44%, client direct buying at 17%, and programmatic purchases at 39%.

Retail continued to lead in display advertising spend, commanding a 17.1% share in 2024. The automotive sector sustained its post-COVID recovery, rising to 14.8%, while finance rounded out the top three, slightly dipping to 8%.

Gai Le Roy CEO of IAB Australia commented: “After a modest growth rate of 3.7% in 2023, the digital advertising market again achieved double digit growth in 2024 sustained by an ever-increasing range of ad formats and environments, as well as spend from the SME market right through to the big end of town. As always growth is mixed across the market, and it is tougher for those content publishers who do not have significant video inventory and are relying on standard display inventory.”

Australia – Market research and consulting firm Ipsos has forged a world-first partnership with audience measurement research firm OzTAM to provide cross-channel video audience measurement across multiple devices and content types.

The incorporation of OzTAM’s data into Ipsos iris stands out as a key innovation within the new IAB currency, Ipsos iris. This integration also marks a notable collaboration among media industry measurement entities on a global scale.

For the first time, through this partnership, free-to-air TV networks will be able to provide a complete audience sizing for their digital video and media assets in a trusted currency environment. It also lets media planners merge and compare BVOD audiences on different devices, like connected TV sets (CTVs), with the wide range of media brand audiences measured by Ipsos iris.

Furthermore, this integration will allow media owners and agencies to see the gradual reach of BVOD audiences when added to web and app audiences on all devices using the Ipsos iris platform. They can also compare audience profiles across all devices and content types for BVOD audiences compared to web and app audiences.

The data from OzTAM’s BVOD comes from OzTAM VPM (video player measurement service), which is Australia’s official measurement for BVOD content. The service can track over 16 million connected devices, including CTVs, mobile phones, tablets, and PCs, on a minute-by-minute basis every day.

Meanwhile, IAB digital web and app audience currency is sourced from Ipsos iris’ 8000 device, an industry-recognised, multi-device, single-source panel. 

BVOD is a key component of VOZ, Australia’s Total TV reporting standard, which is set to become currency in 2024. VOZ brings together broadcaster viewing on TV sets and connected devices to provide all-screen, cross-platform planning and reporting for Australia’s television industry. 

The expansion of CTV metrics in Ipsos iris over the coming months is set to include streaming services, video sharing, and social media platforms. 

As part of the immediate expansion of video measurement, Ipsos iris will now also release audience data for video viewing on websites tagged by Ipsos iris. With this, video audiences tagged on news websites can be broken out by device and demo profile. 

Simon Wake, CEO at Ipsos ANZ, said, “We are thrilled to partner with OzTAM to deliver a unique set of audience data that enhances the utility of Ipsos iris for cross-channel planning and commercial insights. Data fusion is the best way to retain the integrity and accuracy of audience currency measurement across media channels; it also avoids duplication of cost and brings collaboration and consistency across the media ecosystem. Ipsos has a global reputation for delivering innovation, and this audience data set is an important and world-leading development in audience measurement.” 

Karen Halligan, CEO at OzTAM, also shared, “OzTAM is pleased to collaborate with the IAB and Ipsos in defining the Australian video viewing landscape. Partnering with Ipsos to deliver this important new dataset for the media industry further cements OzTAM as the unique, official, and independent market measure for BVOD viewing in Australia.” 

Meanwhile, Gai LeRoy, CEO at IAB Australia, commented, “Industry-standard, cross-media audience data is vital to advertisers and agencies, requiring both accountability and ways to evaluate opportunities consistently across media. Common standards within Ipsos iris and OzTAM for robust, transparent, and independent data have set the benchmark for successful cross-media measurement. This is another example of world-leading Australian innovation in digital content measurement, which will ultimately assist advertisers in making smarter cross-screen investment decisions.” 

Also speaking on the expansion, Craig Johnson, director of research and insights for audience intelligence at Seven, said, “Seven West Media is excited to have the CTV data from OzTAM combined with the current Ipsos iris digital data. For the first time, the industry will be able to see the total online all-devices and content metrics, showing the strength of Seven, 7plus, 7NEWS.com.au, and The West Australian. This year has been a landmark year for audience measurement, with the launch of VOZ and now the incorporation of CTV data into Ipsos iris.” 

Michael Stephenson, chief sales officer at Nine, added, “Nine is pleased to welcome the  integration of VOZ data into Ipsos iris digital ratings system. It is a huge advancement in  showing the true reach and power of Australian publishers and their value to marketers. For the  first time, there will be a single source of measurement across digital platforms that harnesses the world class measurement that OzTAM brings to life with VOZ, allowing advertisers to examine the audience reach of Nine’s total video and online content across 9Now, nine.com.au and our other digital assets. As the media landscape continues to become more fragmented, there is an increasing need for industry collaboration and I congratulate Ipsos and OzTAM for  delivering this initiative.” 

Singapore – Online advertising has continued to grow despite the challenging economic conditions, reaching $3.732b for the Q3 2023, according to data which was drawn from the IAB Australia Online Advertising Expenditure Report (OAER) prepared by PwC, showing how online advertising increased by 7.8% year-on-year and 2.1% over the preceding quarter.

Specifically, the data suggests that total expenditure by category in Q3 2023 quarter was $1.630b for search and directories, $1.451b for general display and $649.2m for classifieds. 

Furthermore, general display advertising increased 2.7% over the June 2023 quarter and 8% year-on-year from the September 2022 quarter. Search and directories also softened by 1.6% from June 2023 but increased 10.6% year-on-year from September 2022.

Within general display advertising, audio advertising expenditure recorded no growth quarter over the June quarter reaching $68m for the September quarter, but it increased 16.2% year-on-year from September 2022. Video advertising recorded a 5% growth quarter-on-quarter to reach $968.1m for the September quarter and 15% growth year-on-year from September 2022.

Additionally, the retail, automotive, and health & beauty sectors all reported strong growth in Q3 2023, with retail reaching 17.1% share of general display advertising, automotive increasing to 15.4% and health and beauty reaching 7.9%. Finance (8.7%) and FMCG (5.7%) remain in the top five industry categories for expenditure.

Lastly, connected TV continues to yield the greatest share of content publisher’s video inventory investment, increasing from 45% in Q2 2023 to 54% in Q3 2023 buoyed in part by Women’s Football World Cup activity. Desktop reduced from 38% to 25% in the same period, while mobile investment increased from 17% to 21%.

Talking about these results, Gai Le Roy, CEO of IAB Australia, commented, “It is encouraging to see marketers continue to invest in advertising to drive growth. However, investment in different media environments was not universal and the market was tough for many organisations.” 

“Retail continues to be the number one advertiser category with investment from local and global retailers. It is also pleasing to see the uplift in automotive advertising with the share of spend in the general display category above 15% for the first time since September 2020,” she added.

Sydney, Australia – Following the conclusion of the 2022 Australian federal elections, new data from IAB Australia and PwC reveals the dominance of political and government ad spending in the digital advertising space locally for the first quarter of 2022, reaching a value of $3.449b–an increase of 19.2% on the same period in 2021.

The political and government ad spending scene reached a 13.5% share of the general display market for the quarter, up from 3.9% in Q1 of 2021. By contrast, retail experienced the largest decrease in share, dropping from 16.4% to 13.5% share of general display advertising.

Meanwhile, all general display categories recorded growth on the previous year, with video advertising increasing 24% to reach $715.1m for the quarter, infeed/native by 5% to reach $349.80m, standard display by 11% to reach $167.7m and other advertising by 69% to reach $21.5m.

Lastly, spending on classifieds and search & directories grew quarter on quarter, increasing 4.3% and 3.6% respectively while general display advertising seasonally contracted by 15.1% as it does each year. Interestingly, search & directory spend in the quarter seized share from general display advertising as the recovery of travel accelerates.

Gai Le Roy, CEO of IAB Australia, commented, “The digital ad market saw solid investment growth for the March quarter compared to the previous year with the standard slight seasonal decline from the December quarter. The make-up of the top advertiser categories was greatly disrupted by significant ad spend from the political parties and independents early into the campaign for the Federal Election.”

Sydney, Australia – The digital advertising market in Australia has been estimated to be valued at reaching US$3.232b for September quarter this year, or up 42.1% year on year. This is according to the latest data from the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) Australia, in association with consulting firm PwC. 

According to the data, search and directory ads increased by 41%, while general display increased by 45.6% and classifieds up 37.3%. 

Meanwhile, retail advertising again held the number one advertiser category share of display advertising investment, now representing 14.4% of display investment and leading video advertising investment. Technology sector in advertising experienced the largest increase in share to reach 7.8%, while automotive advertising’s share of total spend continued to retract, reflecting the supply challenges. Meanwhile, the travel sector saw the largest decrease in share thanks to lockdowns reversing the increases experienced by travel in the June quarter.

In other sectors, video advertising’s share of general display advertising peaked this quarter at 62%, an increase of 72% year-on-year to reach US$784.1m. In addition, native advertising grew 30% year on year, while standard display advertising fell 21% year on year. 

Meanwhile, programmatic trading of content publishers inventory again increased in September quarter this year, delivering 45% of the total expenditure, versus 40% bought through agency insertion orders. Programmatic continues to dominate as the preferred buying method for content publishers’ video inventory.

Speaking about the state of the ad industry in Australia, Gai Le Roy, CEO at IAB Australia commented, “The September quarter had a mix of highs and lows with Olympics activity encouraging investment but the travel market pulling back again with local lockdowns. Overall though investment in [the] digital advertising market continued to impress, with the September quarter increasing 42% on the COVID impacted September 2020, but also increasing 36% compared to the 2019 September quarter.”

Sydney, Australia – Despite 87% of Australian respondents saying that they support advertising measures among online content providers who offer free content, around 70% of Australian respondents are still unaware on how these online content providers generate their revenue despite being a ‘free service’ to customers, according to insights provided by market research company Ipsos during the latest IAB Australia MeasureUp conference.

The report leans heavily on facts relating to importance of transparency and control over data, stating that 81% of consumers stating they want ‘more control and choice’ over the collection and use of their personal information, and 46% stating they wanted companies to stop sharing their information with third parties without consent as a high priority.

Transparency on what data is collected and how it is used is the key driver to a high level of trust in providing personal information (43% ), however sound corporate values such as having a good corporate reputation (40%) and being ethical (39%) are nearly equally key trust drivers.

It also noted that customers who are loyal to certain brands are most likely to share their information out of brand trust. About 47% of respondents say that they are more comfortable about sharing their data, provided that brands need to be more upfront with how the data collected will be used.

In addition, 46% of respondents say that they are willing to share information to these online providers, provided they are the only data needed.

For specific instances, 38% feel comfortable sharing their purchase history with a brand online if requested, 34% feel comfortable sharing browsing history and 38% feel comfortable sharing personal details to online content providers such as email, phone, or address. 

For Gai Le Roy, CEO of IAB Australia, while it is great news that consumers are so supportive of an ad-funded model to these online content providers, the insights suggests the industry has some work to do.

“Trust with a digital brand, including openness to provide data, goes well beyond reading consent notices and extends across all their interactions with the brand online and offline. To ensure the strength and sustainability of the industry, we need to build on existing levels of trust, and respect consumer’s preferences for more transparency and more control in relation to how their data is used,” Le Roy stated.

While nearly all Australians think privacy of their information is important when choosing digital content and services, only 3 in 10 people feel their understanding of data protection and privacy rights is of a high standard. Ultimately 8 in 10 people want more control and choice over the collection of their personal information, while 69% care about their data privacy but don’t know what to do about it.

Sydney, Australia – Amid the pandemic, the Australian digital advertising market has dismissed any pandemic advertising woes to record a 24.2% growth, which is the strongest since 2016, reaching US$11.4b online advertising expenditure for the 2021 financial year, new findings by the association for online advertising, IAB Australia.

According to the association’s ‘Online Advertising Expenditure Report’ (OAER), which is prepared by PwC, the data confirms that while the overall advertising market has rebounded, digital advertising is leading the charge and now dominates expenditure. During the 12 months ending 30 June 2021, all sectors of online advertising experienced double-digit growth.

Meanwhile, video advertising also jumped 38.8% year on year to reach US$2.4bn, while the general display grew 29.7% to US$4.4b. For the period, the search and directories grew 22.3% to US$5.1b, with classifieds also seeing an upward trajectory with 17.4% growth to US$1.9b. 

Moreover, the same report revealed that for the financial year 2021, retail was the top advertising category with 16% of all display advertising, up from 11.4% share in the financial year 2020, with expenditure coming from both traditional and e-commerce retailers. Across other categories, FMCG and technology expenditure increased their share for the period to 7.2% and 6.4% respectively while finance share remained flat. On the other hand, both automotive and travel advertising expenditure decreased year on year.

Gai Le Roy, the CEO of IAB Australia, commented that the growth in digital ad investment over the last year has been extraordinary and it’s clear that marketers are confident using it as a key growth engine for their businesses across the broad range of available formats and environments. 

“While the evolution of retailing has become a major driver of investment in digital advertising and we expect some shopping will return to physical stores in the future, the broad reach, deep engagement, and data-rich offerings will ensure retailers continue to place digital at the heart of their advertising and marketing plans,” said Le Roy. 

The study also noted that the changing media consumption patterns, accelerated by COVID lockdowns, have resulted in strong growth for connected TV spend, increasing the share of all video spend from 38% to 47% year-on-year. While the desktop share decreased from 36% to 32% and mobile from 26% to 21% for the financial year 2021.

In addition, the programmatic trading has continued to hold strong with slight growth from 41% to 43% share of expenditure for the financial year 2021, against 41% of inventory purchased via agency and 16% direct.