Market intelligence service Warc has found that of the $590.4 billion spent on global advertising last year, $144.6 billion, that is 24.5 per cent, went to the Google and Facebook ‘duopoly’, which equates to one in four dollars.

The agency has pegged adspend share of the duopoly up from 20.3 per cent in 2017 and more than double the 10.8 per cent recorded in 2014. Warc has predicted a further increase to 28.6 per cent ($176.4 billion) this year.

Global adspend

Based on data from 96 countries, Warc predicts a 4.3 per cent rise in global adspend, bringing total investment to over $616 billion. However, while internet advertising is still the driving force, the agency has said the online market is showing signs of weakness beyond the Google and Facebook duopoly.

An analysis of the internet advertising market shows the duopoly took over half, at 56.4 per cent, of ad money in 2018, a share which Warc has said will rise to 61.4 per cent this year.

The agency has said the growth is squeezing other online media owners, as the pool of ad money available to them is in decline for the first time, down 0.7 per cent to $111 billion.

James McDonald, Data Editor, at Warc has noted: “One of the main reasons for the duopoly’s success is their creation, and subsequent ownership, of the digital formats perceived to be most effective by adland’s decision makers: paid search and social. Several surveys in the past year have shown search and social to be highly regarded by advertisers in terms of meeting campaign objectives.”

Video dominance

Google dominates the search engine market, he added, handling almost all mobile searches worldwide and nine in ten on desktops. Warcs research on the duopoly showed Google and Facebook directly competing for video dominance.

The value of the online video market across Warc’s 12 key markets: India, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, UK, US’, was pegged at $30.2 billion.

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