The State of Programmatic Video in Asia: Q1, 2020

Programmatic is an ideal channel to acquire and engage users while providing them an immersive brand experience. Among ad formats that can be transacted programmatically, there’s truly one format that is gaining more mindshare among consumers and smartphone users: Video. In-app video advertising can truly captivate audiences at every stage of their journey.

Delving into data from the InMobi platform, we unravel insights on the growing usage of video programmatic advertising across India, Southeast Asia, and ANZ.

Programmatic Video Advertising in Southeast Asia

1. Video is the most preferred format on programmatic

• Video accounts for 40 percent of all programmatic ad spends in Southeast Asia.
• In Q1 2020, Shopping, News, Technology, Entertainment and Dating were the top spending verticals.
• The top 5 categories saw over 100 percent growth in ad spends.

2. Vertical Video is the way to go for top spenders

• Vertical video accounts for 35% of all video ad spends while landscape video owns the lion’s share.
• Advertisers across industries invest almost equally in vertical video – Shopping (50%), Finance (44%), Dating (43%), and landscape video.

Programmatic Video Advertising in ANZ

1.In-app programmatic video surges

• With a 63% surge in programmatic in-app video buying YoY, Entertainment, News, Business, Health and Fitness, Music, and Video made the most of programmatic video
• The ‘News’ vertical became the highest spender as of March 2020

2.Vertical video grows; Landscape remains a majority

• Australia has seen a steep increase of 162% on vertical video ad spends in the first 3 months of the year.
• Spending on landscape video ads increased by 23% YoY.
• Over half of all programmatic video ads were landscape

Programmatic Video Advertising in India

1.News is the biggest programmatic spender

• Programmatic video ad spends grew 7 percent YoY in India with the top verticals being News, Shopping, Business, Entertainment and Finance.
• News became the top spender Q4 2019 to Q1 2020.
• Shopping saw a 28% rise in spends in Q1, 2020.
• Music and Audio, Health and Fitness, and Education have seen a whopping 500% rise in programmatic video in-app ad spending in Q1.

2.Vertical Video is a New Favorite

• Vertical video spends dramatically increased – 99 percent YoY.
• Landscape video spends still account for a majority – 72 percent - of programmatic video spends.
• Advertisers across industries invest almost equally in vertical video – Entertainment (47%), Finance (45%), and landscape video.

Three Reasons why Brands Should Leverage the Capabilities of the Programmatic Video

Why is programmatic in-app video advertising growing across so many industries across these regions?

1. Mobile Apps Take the Center Stage in Terms of Reach

With the number of consumers using apps is growing rapidly, in app advertising is ideal for reaching them. Programmatic advertising makes it easier to reach the target audience at scale, as opposed to working with each app to place ads. Most importantly, according to InMobi data, consumers from Asia will all be soon mobile-first, which gives scope for Programmatic Video advertising and provides advertisers with an audience at scale

2. Programmatic Video Ideal for Brand Safety and Viewability

Brands are facing the issue of brand safety with ads being placed next to inappropriate content. In-app video advertising can be the perfect solution for this persistent concern as the app content goes through stringent approval process from the respective stores with Google and Apple validating the laid brand safety guidelines.
Another important facet of video programmatic advertising is its viewability. People watch video ads more often than they see smaller, less obtrusive formats like banners. And, with digital advertising, you can measure how many people saw a video ad, for how long and other action driven metrics which is not really possible with TV advertising. User experience can be enhanced with video ads served through VAST tags that ensure the creative is preloaded and doesn’t buffer, so that end users see the ad play seamlessly as soon as an ad opportunity arises in app.

3. Video Ads, When Created Programmatically, Drive Engagement and Innovation

A video ad can contain immersive content such as rich media, interactivity and end cards. For example, a video ad can include a map that shows a user where the nearest brand location is to navigate them in that direction. This creates a captivating experience for the user to take direct action from the ad. Such interactive experiences ensure that the users are engaged innovatively.