Study Shows 64% lift in demand and 26% lift in supply worldwide for programmatically traded inventory

The 2014 Global Programmatic Insights Report is the first study of both buying and selling behaviors in the OpenX marketplace, covering programmatic trading across screen types and buying models.

Our unique visibility into programmatic trends provides us with a more comprehensive picture of the health and direction of the market. Key findings from 2014 include:

• Programmatic enjoyed strong growth in 2014, with demand up 64%, and the volume of supply up 26%.
• Growth in demand was led by five industry sectors, and accounted for nearly 40% of total ad spend. Those sectors are: CPG, insurance, telecom, retail and health & beauty.
• Both supply and demand are growing globally. Nearly half (48%) of all ad requests stemmed from outside the US. In Europe, programmatic spending increased by 80%, and in Canada by more than 100%.

The growth in sophistication is particularly notable. In 2014, programmatic campaigns routinely included more screens, formats and buying models.

For example, mobile programmatic continued its upward trajectory.

• In 2014, demand for mobile inventory grew at 4x the rate of demand for desktop ad units.
• Based on 2014 growth rates, mobile will likely account for 50% of all programmatic ad spend in 2015, eclipsing spending for desktop.
• Mobile now accounts for 25% of ad requests in the OpenX Ad Exchange, nearly tripling in volume since 2013.

The expansion and adoption, of newer models for transacting programmatic campaigns, also point to increasing sophistication among buyers and sellers.

PMP spending will more than double in 2015, generating $2.53 billion in revenue, bringing new ad dollars to programmatic.

eMarketer

• CPMs earned in PMPs are 3x higher than those earned in the open ad exchange — a positive trend for publishers seeking to optimize their programmatic yields.
• Although open marketplaces will get the lion’s share of spending, programmatic direct is expected to gain quickly, growing from 8% in 2014, to 26% in 2015 and 42% in 2016, eMarketer reports.

The global programmatic industry saw substantial growth in 2014, driven in large part to the increasing sophistication among buyers and sellers. We continue to see important trends emerging such as the substantial growth of mobile channels and configurable buying/selling models making programmatic an increasingly desirable transaction method for digital advertisers who are now more than ever interested in collecting and executing deals backed by audience data.