According to EMarketer, Google will overtake Facebook in U.S. display-ad revenue next year. It is believed that Google will grab 19.8 percent of the market in 2013, generating $3.68 billion, while Facebook will attract 17.7 percent, or $3.29 billion, according to the research firm.
Facebook took the lead in display-ad revenue last year and is expected to maintain its lead throughout 2012. Facebook took the lead in the category by seeding it’s social network with small ads, while Google expanded from its origins in text-based search-engine links to sell a variety of graphical advertising on websites, mobile phones and YouTube clips.
Debra Aho Williamson, an analyst with EMarketer, said that Facebook needs to do more for big brands to take out ads rather than just set up free company spaces. “It really comes down to brand advertisers,” she said. “[Facebook] just needs to do a better job of convincing the big advertisers that ads are effective and that they perform.”
EMarketer believes that Yahoo will drop from for 7.5 percent of the U.S. display market in 2014, down from almost 11 percent from 2011 while AOL Inc. will drop to 3.7 percent from 4.3 percent. Google will have 21.7 percent in 2014, with 17.1 percent going to Facebook it is estimated.
Google is expected to have 47.4 percent of the total U.S. online ad market in 2014, up from 41 percent last year, while Facebook will rise to 7.1 percent from 5.4 percent, EMarketer estimates. Google being able to place ads outside of its own properties is also a major benefit.
“Don’t underestimate the importance of existing relationships,” said David Hallerman, Emarketer analyst. “Google has relationships with more major brands than Facebook does.”
Source: Business Week {link no longer active}
