While mobile ad spending has been growing by leaps and bounds, digital ad spending as a whole is reaching all-time highs.
Digital ad spend refers to any paid digital advertisements meant for viewership on desktops, laptops, tablets, smartphones, and any other connected devices. It is estimated that digital ad spending will increase by over 14 % in 2014, reaching $137 billion worldwide.
This means that digital ad spending will account for approximately 25% of all global media spending, outpacing estimates.
As recently as 2012, digital ad spending only accounted for approximately 20% of global media spending. According to eMarketer, digital ad spending will grow to approximately 30% of global media spending by 2018, which will be approximately $204 billion dollars.
In terms of digital ad spend by region, North America accounts for approximately 40% of all digital advertising dollars. Western Europe accounts for around 24%, and Asia – Pacific accounts for just over 28% of digital ad spending. While digital ad spending is growing dollar for dollar in most countries, it is surprisingly on the decline when it comes to overall percentage of media spending in some countries.
Total media spending is expected to reach over $656 billion by 2018, meaning that worldwide media spending will only be increasing by 5%. This means the 30% increase in digital ad spending will play a significant role in that number.
While the United States may secure more dollar for dollar digital ads, when it comes to specific digital channels, countries such as the UK, Denmark, and Australia often purchase more digital ads as a whole.