San Mateo, Calif. - May 5, 2015

Within media categories, Social Networking takes the No. 1 spot from Music, Video and Media - also for the first time

Mobile advertising data from first quarter of 2015 shows Android not just leading in traffic, but now revenue, holding a 45.8% share of total revenue generated on the platform, Opera Mediaworks discloses today in its State of Mobile Advertising report.

In terms of monetization potential, or the ratio of revenue to impressions, iOS is still the leader, with the iPad generating more than 4X its traffic volume in Q1. For mobile video ads only, iOS outperforms Android for both traffic and revenue, and video completion rates for Apple users are higher (87.1% vs. 76.7%).

More highlights from the report:

  • Social Networking and Games generate the most revenue. Music, Video & Media has been the traditional revenue leader on the Opera Mediaworks platform, but this quarter - for the first time - both Social Networking and Games trumped the category.
  • In emerging economies, mobile advertising is in a high-growth phase. While the United States is still the top producer of impressions and revenue, there is notable year-over-year traffic growth in Asia (19%), the Americas (61%) and Africa (32%).
  • Mobile video advertising is booming. In just one year, video-ad impression share increased sixfold, from 2.5% in Q1 2014 to 15% in Q1 2015. And, video accounts for more than half of all global revenue generated on the platform.
  • Some regions, however, are adopting mobile video at a faster rate. U.S. mobile users, for instance, view more video ads than any other country; the United States' video market share is 2.5X its share of total user reach.
  • Different types of advertisers, too, are showing preference for mobile video units. Movie & Television Entertainment spend the most money on video and use the most impressions; Food & Drink and Automotive brands are also using the format significantly more than other types of advertisers.

View all the quarterly insights here.

Special focus: Intelligent Audience Creation

As part of its examination of mobile advertising data from Q1, Opera Mediaworks found that, in some regions, over 85% of mobile ad campaigns are being targeted to an audience that was created specifically for that one campaign.

To find out how these audiences are formed, the company took a closer look at audience creation methodology, or how advertisers are using contextual, behavioral and demographic data to home in on very specific subsets of consumers that will be the most receptive to the ad messaging of their campaigns.

The concept, while lightly introduced in the quarterly report, is the subject of an in-depth study that Opera Mediaworks is releasing in conjunction with its SMA report. Read Intelligent Audience Creation here.

About Opera Mediaworks

Opera Mediaworks is the first mobile ad platform for brands, delivering surprise and delight at scale. Our technology powers the biggest publishers in the world and enables marketers to provide the highest quality experiences to more people in more places when it matters most. Our exclusive Instant-Play™HD video technology and award-winning rich media touches, engages and creates deep interaction with consumers in the most popular mobile apps and sites around the globe. We work with over 90% of the AdAge Top 100 advertisers and 18 of the top 25 global publishers. A fully-owned subsidiary of Opera Software, Opera Mediaworks is headquartered in San Mateo, California, with offices worldwide. To learn more, visit www.operamediaworks.com.

About Opera Software ASA

Opera Software crafts products and services that connect 350 million people to the internet. More than 130 operators around the world choose to work with us to give their customers the best web experience. Our mobile advertising platform enables publishers to monetize their content and allows brands to reach a global audience of more than 800 million consumers.www.opera.com, and blogs.opera.com.

Opera is a trademark of Opera Software ASA.

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