Decoding The Adblocking Threat Key Players, End Games And Implications

The 20,000 Foot View

The desktop right now is undoubtedly where there is the most lost ad revenue due to adblocking. Adblocking on mobile may currently be smaller but this should not be an excuse for complacency and allowing the problem to acquire desktop adblocking proportions before serious notice is taken. Mobile adblocking is evolving fast and recent developments suggest that its not-so-distant implications will not only impact publishers’ revenues, but will also drive farther reaching disruption. Adblocker impact will be as diverse as it is disruptive, ranging from putting the Chrome mobile browser at risk through to telcos adopting an advertising gatekeeper role as they smarten up their pipes.

Key Findings

• Though vast majority of adblocking takes place on desktop, the threat of mobile adblocking cannot be ignored
• The sum of recent events in Mobile adblocking significantly increases the size of addressable audience and will speed up penetration
• The share of mobile page views accounted for by browsers that support adblockers increased from            to            between July 2015 and January 2016
• Eyeo’s Acceptable Ads initiative will unify adblockers and has the potential to effectively become a new digital advertising standard watchdog
• Only between            and            of adblocking users change the default settings of their adblockers
• Between            and            of adblocking users whitelist ads
•            will have continue to boost adblocking adoption as Apple consumers continue to upgrade to            devices
• Carrier level adblocking will shortly be accessible to            million users in UK, Italy and The Carribean, with a high probability of more to follow
• Increased media coverage of adblocking is harming publishers and improving adblocker market awareness

Companies mentioned in this report: Adblock, Adobe, Alibaba, Android, Apple, Chrome, Crystal, Digicel, Eyeo, Ghostery, GlobalWebIndex, Global Stats Counter, Google, IEMobile, Microsoft, Microsoft Edge Opera, Outbrain, PageFair, Purify, Safari, Samsung, Shine Technologies, Taboola, Three Europe, UCWeb