Data had a landmark year in 2014. This year we saw everyone get interested in data. Brands, agencies, publishers, automakers, consumers, legislators and even the Supreme Court was fixated on issues surrounding digital data. Most of these issues centered on the data captured, stored and shared by our mobile phones.
As the device that goes everywhere with us throughout the day, the industry is now just starting to realize the immense data opportunities created by Mobile. On the revenue side, Mobile continued its unhindered ascension to digital dominance. The IAB half-year ad revenue numbers showed Mobile revenues increased 71% in 1H14 capturing 24% of total internet revenues or a total of $2.8B in ad spend.
With this continued monumental shift to Mobile comes an ever-growing list of terms, acronyms and the confusion that accompanies any nascent industry. We at the IAB are no strangers to helping supply the tools to enable nascent markets to grow. Our Mobile Marketing Center of Excellence was started four years ago with the sole purpose of growing Mobile budgets and today we have taken another leap towards facilitating that goal.
I’m excited to announce the release of the IAB’s Mobile Data Primer – a companion document to our updated Data Primer released in 2013. This Mobile Data Primer marks an important step in helping us coalesce, as an industry, around the data opportunities, classifications and use cases available in the Mobile Advertising Market. It also provides important Mobile data best practices and an updated code of conduct.
Beyond providing clarity and transparency, our aim is for this primer to be used as a foundation that will enable deeper conversations around the Mobile data opportunity in the coming year. Now that we have a common knowledge base, we can explore more sophisticated use cases and can leverage Mobile data as part of an overall marketing automation strategy to inform better messaging and creative, and foster deeper consumer relationships.
I would like to thank the IAB’s Data Council for their continued work to help truly demystify data for the digital industry, and also for their leadership in the creation of this primer. We are excited to continue these conversations as data maintains center stage in the coming years.