The New York Times has reported that mobile phones are becoming essential holiday shopping tools, and marketers who are planning campaigns accordingly should stick close to search giant Google. A new report from IDC reveals that Google is gaining share in mobile search and display ads.
Google accounts for 91.4 percent of the $487.3 million mobile search advertising market, Business Insider relays from IDC. Meanwhile, competitors Bing and Yahoo account for just 2.0 percent and 1.6 percent, respectively. This is unsurprising in light of Statcounter data indicating that Google fields more than 98 percent of mobile queries.
The search giant's dominance also extends to the growing mobile display ad market, with Google holding 19 percent share. Apple closely follows, accounting for 18.8 percent of mobile display ads, and Millennial Media ranked third, with 15.4 percent share.
The rise of Google coincides with the overall rise in the mobile ad market. As BusinessWeek reports, the IDC study reveals the market has more than doubled since last year, and all signs point to further growth. "Advertisers have embraced this in a big way," the source quotes Karsten Weide, a vice-president at IDC, as saying.
News of Google's predominance in the mobile market comes during what could be a big season for mobile commerce. An earlier report from IDC anticipated that mobile sales will account for 28 percent of consumer spending this holiday.
