UK marketers will increase spending for online and mobile campaigns this year by 14% to £5.5bn, up to £6.7bn in 2014, and £7.7bn in 2016, according to a new study.
The research, carried out by eMarketer, paints an even more optimistic picture of digital spend than the UK Interactive Advertising Bureau UK, which reported a rise of 12.6% to a record six-month high of £2.59bn in the first half of 2012.
Comparing UK with US budgets, marketers in the States will spend $166bn (£72bn), up to $189bn (£118bn) in 2016, according to the research carried out by eMarketer.
Paid search will continue to account for more than half of digital ad spending for marketers, as mobile search volume rises.
Marketers will spend 15.3% more in 2012 on paid-search ads, reaching $3.2bn, or 58.5%, of all UK digital spending. Within four years spend will rise to £4.4bn, but market share will slip to 57.1%.
This year, about £1.2bn or 23% of all UK digital ad spending will go to display advertising such as banners, rich media, video and sponsorships, eMarketer estimates. The steady gains, in part, will come from an increase in use of real-time bidding and video formats, although doubts about the speed of economic recovery will lead some advertisers to focus on proven search tactics.
Online video ads in the UK should rise from £170m in 2012 to about £870m in 2016, according to eMarketer. The estimates include social video and video advertising on mobile devices.
Mobile advertising will grow 120% in 2012, as spending on mobile platforms reaches £450m. In 2016, mobile ad spending is expected to reach roughly £2.2bn. Nearly 83% of all residents will be mobile phone users this year in the UK, which is the world’s third-largest market for mobile advertising, and more than one-third of those will have a smartphone, according to eMarketer.
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