Internet advertising breaks new ground in 2018: report

Photo courtesy of the Interactive Marketing Lab in Zhongguancun

In 2018, the total revenue from Internet advertising stood at 369.4 billion yuan, with an annual growth rate of 24.2 percent, according to a report released by the Interactive Marketing Lab in Zhongguancun, Beijing.

According to the report, the income generated through Internet advertising accounted for about 4.2 percent of the country’s GDP last year, an increase of 0.6 percent from 2017.

The market share of the industry's top 10 platforms rose to 92.67 percent in 2018, as the traditional giants continued to maintain growth and new giants, such as Jinri Toutiao and Xiaomi, rose rapidly.

Last year, due to the substantial increase in mobile terminal access traffic, Internet advertising was more inclined towards those using mobile phones, and the mobile advertising revenue ratio increased to 68 percent, up 6 percent from 2017.

The report indicated that enterprises are now more willing to invest in high-quality and accurate traffic, making application platforms the most mainstream advertising channel.

Photo courtesy of the Interactive Marketing Lab in Zhongguancun

In regards to media platforms, income from e-commerce and search platforms contributed to more than half of the total Internet advertising revenue. In terms of the forms of advertising, display, e-commerce and search platforms accounted for more than 80 percent of the total income.

The report also showed that fast-moving consumer goods, food and beverages are still the main Internet advertising categories, accounting for 49.31 percent of all advertised goods, followed by transportation, network communication, and real estate.

The report noted that the implementation of China's Cyber Security Law and the EU's General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) raised the importance of network data security to a new level, pointing out that strengthening self-discipline and maintaining a good Internet advertising market environment is the responsibility of every Internet operator.