An advertising industry study carried out by IAB Ireland/PwC records growth of 29% in the Irish digital advertising market, with total digital spending reaching €340 mln in 2015.  

The 2015 IAB PwC Online Adspend Study Display indicates that advertising had the highest growth rate at 38%, representing €137m in 2015. Display now represents 40% of total digital spend.   

Paid-for-Search advertising has grown by 28% year on year and remains the dominant digital format with a 52% share of total online adspend at €176m. 

Classified advertising online holds an 8% share of total online adspend at €27m. 

Within the Display Category, Social Media Display saw a 72% growth from €28.5m in 2014 to €49m in 2015. Spend on digital video grew by 71% from €14.3m in 2014 to €24.5m in 2015 reflecting the strong commitment of brand advertisers to the video format. 

Mobile advertising is a key driver of total digital adspend growth accounting for 81% of the total growth arising from the increase in mobile advertising. Mobile Search accounts for 63% of mobile spend at €89m with Mobile Display advertising representing a 37% share at €52m 

PwC predicts 14.6% growth (CAGR) in Irish digital adspend during the period 2014-2019. 

Commenting on the study results, CEO of IAB Ireland Suzanne McElligott, said: “The big story from our 2015 report is the acceleration of mobile advertising to representing 41% of the total digital adspend. Mobile advertising is beginning to catch up with user engagement on mobile devices. 

PwC Strategy Manager, Kieran Little added: “The digital advertising industry in Ireland continues to show very strong growth, which reached 29% in 2015 (YoY). We are seeing significant focus by advertisers on mobile advertising and strong growth on digital display driven by video-on-demand, social media and native advertising.” 

Source; www.businessworld.ie