Apple may be implementing a number of changes to its iAd mobile advertising platform in an effort to attract more advertisers and to compete more aggressively against Google’s advertising solutions. The Cupertino-based company originally required that advertisers spend a minimum of $1 million on its iAd platform but then halved that figure to $500,000. Now, The Wall Street Journal said Apple is beginning to woo marketers by allowing them to spend as little as $400,000 on an iAd campaign. Read on for more.
Apple is rethinking how its pricing structure works, too. It will now put a cap on how much it charges advertisers every time a user taps on an advertisement. The Wall Street Journal explained that Apple currently charges $2 each time a user clicks an in-app advertisement and $10 every time the ad is viewed 1,000 times. Google, by contrast, charges between $4 and $12 each time an ad is viewed 1,000 times. Apple also reportedly plans to implement a mobile advertising training program for its employees and clients.
These changes are no doubt an effort to regain lost advertising market share. According to data from research firm IDC, Apple’s mobile-ad market share dropped from 19% last year to 15% this year. The company now has a smaller market share both than Google and Millennial Media. IDC believes Apple will have a hard time competing with Google and Millennial because it only sells ads on Apple products.
“Apple we believe will, over time, fade into the background,” IDC analyst Karsten Weide explained. “[iAd] was attempted to make sure that even consumers advertising experience on Apple devices was perfect, but it hasn’t really worked.”
