Mobile advertising growth expected to ride the fast track

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A new study sees decent growth in local advertising platforms over the five years spanning 2009-2014. And although it will end that period with but a small piece of the total local pie, local mobile will nevertheless enjoy a very rapid expansion. The report from BIA/Kelsey puts total local at $130.6B in 2009, and sees it hitting $145.2B at the end of the cycle.


While this $14.6B gain in overall local revenue is taking place, local mobile will be making major strides, going from a 2009 total of $213M to a $2.02B performance in 2014.

Online/interactive local will also enjoy positive growth, going from $15.5B to $35.2B, according to the report. Meanwhile, traditional media will be heading in the opposite direction, even while hanging onto the bulk of the business, moving from $115.1B in 2009 to only $110B in 2014.

“We expect advertisers will be drawn to mobile marketing as the overall market shifts to digital ad platforms,” said Neal Polachek, president, BIA/Kelsey. “A lack of traffic to fulfill quotas on geotargeted ads will likely accelerate mobile Web site and application development by publishers.”

RBR-TVBR observation: Rapid growth is of course the hallmark of any new medium that garners any acceptance at all. CATV enjoyed it when it first figured out how to sell local advertising. This report puts mobile at about 1.4% of the local pie in 2014 – it’s a nice piece of change, but it’s not the kind of massive chomp that’s going to wipe out the competition.

Ideally, some of this mobile money will be going to broadcasters anyway — diversifying platforms is the way to succeed in the future, and both internet/interactive and mobile should be in broadcasters’ plans to make the most of their strong local platform.