Australia - Digital Economy - Advertising and Marketing Industry

Synopsis

While many advertisers are cottoning on to digital advertising, take up until now has been hampered by a lack of industry standardization and sophistication in targeting ads and personalising them.

However, advances in technology, trends and performance of mobile and online advertising offer great potential in areas such as display advertisements, electronic direct mail, integrated content, streaming video and email. Digital platforms will in future enable digital advertisers to employ targeted advertising based on a user’s specific profile.

Despite a first quarter slowdown due to the global financial crisis, revenues from online advertising in Australia grew by 19% in 2008/09 to reach a total market value of $510 million. Although site display revenues may pick up again as economic conditions improve, the swing toward performance-based solutions is expected to grow steadily over the next five years. The medium promises strong growth in areas such as mobile advertising which was valued at $7.5 million in the Australian market for 2008/09. Email direct marketing was a strong performer, recording a growth rate of 20% during the year, with online video’s market share increased significantly to 25%. This trend is expected to continue over the next few years especially as advertisers look for alternatives to the mainstream and established online display market.

Key Australian companies in this market are The Belong Group, BlueFreeway and Hyro. Advertisers are migrating from traditional media to new media as the web audience grows, potentially at the expense of the traditional media audience.