Digital Ad Spending in China 2018

Digital ad spending in China will experience robust growth in 2018, fueled by mobile ad spending, which we expect to continue despite uncertainty surrounding the US trade war and tariffs. By the end of this year, digital ad expenditures will represent 22.4% of the global digital ad market.

How much ad spending in China will go to digital formats? eMarketer forecasts that digital ad spending will increase 26.5% to $62.55 billion in 2018. Digital will account for 64.8% of China’s total media ad spending.

What factors are influencing digital ad spending in China? Mobile will account for at least 80% of digital ad spending, with the trio of tech companies known as “BAT” (Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent) capturing most of those dollars (69.7% of total mobile spending). Digital video ad spending will grow by 34.6% this year as marketers look to reach the consumers spending more time watching digital video formats.

At least 80% of digital ad spending in China will go to mobile formats. This is due to a robust number of mobile ad products, and the fact that adults are spending a significant amount of digital media time with mobile devices (59.3%). Alibaba, Baidu and Tencent have all taken a mobile-first approach to advertising and will account for 69.7% of total mobile ad spending this year. Among digital advertising overall, they will capture 63.2% of ad dollars.