Dive Brief:
- Recent research on ad-blocking software found that while 24% of respondents use ad-blockers on home and work computers, just 3% use the technology on smartphones and tablets.
- Given this discrepancy, marketers have even more reason to focus on mobile for advertising.
- Even though both marketers and publishers have reason to dislike ad-blocking software, fraudulent ad bots remain a problem for both by charging for ads that never get served to an actual person.
Dive Insight:
Ad-blocking software is one of those inconveniences that keeps both marketers and publishers up at night. For publishers the technology takes away a source of income, and for marketers it makes it tougher to actually serve those ads to a target audience. Recent research by Genesis Media uncovered a reason why marketers might want to redouble their move to the mobile channel for advertising. The research found 24% of respondents installed ad-blockers on their work and home computers, but a mere 3% installed the software on their mobile devices.
Adweek readers responded on social media to an article on the report pointing out that iOS9, preloaded on the new iPhone 6s, allows developers to create mobile browser extensions that block different types of web content, including ads.
As much of a headache ad blockers can be for marketers and publishers, fraudulent ad bots are also a source of trouble by charging for ads that never get served to an actual person. The IAB with ANA, 4As and Google, along with seven other tech companies, recently announced the creation of the Trustworthy Accountability Group to stop ad fraud bots with a blacklist of ad bot IP addresses.
In a Google blog post, Vegard Johnsen, product manager Google Ad Traffic Quality, said, "By pooling our collective efforts and working with industry bodies, we can create strong defenses against those looking to take advantage of our ecosystem."
