The global sales of Real-time bidding is projected to be worth USD 16,095.0 million in 2024 and expected to reach a value of USD 87,877.0 million by 2034. Sales are estimated to rise at a CAGR of 18.5% over the forecast period between 2024 and 2034. The income created by Real-time bidding in 2023 was USD 13,582.3 million. The application is projected to register a Y-o-Y growth of 18.1% in 2024.
RTB, or real-time bidding, is that sort of programmatic ad technology through which marketers can bid on digital ad spaces in a real-time capacity when the user loads a web page or application.
The entire process is completed within milliseconds, with advertisers are competing for the display spots targeting specific audiences by utilizing the data of users, whether it's demographics, interests, or browsing behavior. RTB takes place in ad exchanges, where publishers make their inventories of ads available while advertisers are bidding for impressions, supporting the real-time bidding market.
RTB is used majorly owing to its efficient and precise medium for targeting. This eliminates the need for advertisers to buy large blocks with hope to reach their audience. Instead, RTB enables advertisers to reach specific user groups, hence the campaigns become more efficient as it helps reach the desired customers.
This is because the advertisement bids take place based on the user profiles, and therefore, it is ensured that the advertiser only pays for impressions likely to convert, thereby maximizing ROI. RTB gives scalability as well; it can process large amounts of ad impressions across an enormous scale of platforms including websites, apps, and connected TVs in real-time.
Another main reason RTB is popular is that it enables measuring and optimizing campaigns in real-time. These allows advertisers to understand performance metrics like clicks, conversions, and user engagement as it happen. This allows to adjust strategies or bidding amount or ad creatives quickly to improve performance, driving real-time bidding market.
On the sell-side, RTB maximizes revenue by auctioning every impression at the highest price possible for ad space. It gives an open competitive market that plays like a win-win between the publishers and the advertisers. With digital increasing day to day, RTB indicates an important role in optimizing buyers and sellers of ads with a data-driven, flexible approach towards handling digital marketing.
Global Real-time Bidding Application Assessment
| Attributes | Key Insights |
|---|---|
| Historical Size, 2023 | USD 13,582.3 million |
| Estimated Size, 2024 | USD 16,095.0 million |
| Projected Size, 2034 | USD 87,877.0 million |
| Value-based CAGR (2024 to 2034) | 18.5% |
The gaming industry is significantly contributing to growth in the real-time bidding market by providing a dynamic and highly engaging environment for the advertisers. The rapid expansion of mobile, online, and console gaming further boosts the industry to present vast opportunities in in-game advertising where RTB is playing a key role.
As users spend more time in the game, RTB allows for real-time bids to be placed on ad space, targeting specific users based on their gaming behavior, demographics, and preferences. Brand domains have to reach highly relevant audiences so that the impact of these ads increases the ROI.
More importantly, the success of free-to-play games accelerates RTB adoption since most of such games have programmatic display advertising banners, video ads, and rewarded ads integrated into them, and all these are made possible through RTB. Since RTB makes real-time decisions on which ads to display, reaching players readily through seamless gameplay forms is very easy for advertisers whereas publishers maximize their ad revenue through selling impressions to the highest bidder.
The global diverse user base of gaming also gives advertisers deep information to create highly customized campaigns. Interactive content tends to work well with gamers, as they are often savvy about technology, making them an ideal target group for brands seeking increased engagement and conversion in programmatic advertising. The increasing popularity of eSports and live streaming also underscores the growth of the real-time bidding market. These platforms interact with a significant audience, providing premium placements in which to bid on via RTB.
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The below table presents the anticipated CAGR for the global Real-time bidding market over several semi-annual periods spanning from 2024 to 2034. This assessment outlines changes in the Real-time bidding application and identify revenue trends, offering key decision makers an understanding about market performance throughout the year.
H1 symbolizes first half of the year from January to June, H2 spans from July to December, which is the second half. In the first half (H1) of the year from 2023 to 2033, the business is expected to grow at a CAGR of 17.8%, followed by an increased growth rate of 18.7% in the second half (H2) of the same year.
| Particular | Value CAGR |
|---|---|
| H1, 2023 | 17.8% (2023 to 2033) |
| H2, 2023 | 18.7% (2023 to 2033) |
| H1, 2024 | 17.6% (2024 to 2034) |
| H2, 2024 | 19.0% (2024 to 2034) |
Moving into the subsequent period, from H1 2024 to H2 2034, the CAGR is projected to decrease slightly to 17.6% in the first half and remain higher at 19.0% in the second half. In the first half (H1) the market witnessed a decrease of 20 BPS while in the second half (H2), the market witnessed an increase of 30 BPS.
Ad Personalization and Video Advertising are an Escalating Trend in Real-time Bidding Market
Ad personalization is one of the major trend in the RTB market. As consumers are looking for a more relevant & personalized advertising experience, RTB allows advertisers to deliver highly personalized ads through the use of user data.
Thus, the capabilities of brands to target specific users on basis of behavior, demographics, interests, and real-time surfing activities through RTB is growing. For instance, an e-commerce site may place a bid on the ad space targeting users who have lately searched for some products so that its ads will be displayed to users at greater likelihoods of engagement.
This targeting capability permits advertisers to better optimize their ad spending in terms of the audience type they must target at the appropriate time, thereby achieving better overall campaign effectiveness and return on investment (ROI). Personalization also increases user experience because it can present ads aligned with users' interest, hence minimizing the possibility of irrelevant advertisements.
Owing to this, there is an increased adoption of RTB by advertisers in pursuit of granular targeting, brand engagement improvement, and conversion. Further improvements in data analytics, AI, and machine learning models improve personalization capability in RTB.
Rise of video content especially on mobile devices & steaming platforms is fueling growth of video advertising through RTB. Video ads also generally have far higher click-through rates than static ads, meaning they are in high demand by brands competing for attention in a digital environment. RTB allows the advertisers to bid on the video ad space in real-time, therefore actually showing the most appropriate ads to the most appropriate audiences based on their profiles and viewer behavior.
Programmatic Advertising Growth and Increased Use of Data fueling the Real-time Bidding Market Growth
The key driver for the RTB market can be considered as a movement from traditional to programmatic advertising. Programmatic advertising automates the buying as well as selling of ad space, thus being faster, more efficient, and scalable.
Today's advertisers are no longer required to negotiate with some media sales person for placements but instead are allowed through the open-source protocol of RTB to bargain bids for individual impressions in real time so that their ads reach the right people. Automation helps advertisers target potential users with greater precision by employing data-driven insights in order to display ads to the most likely people to view them as relevant.
Furthermore, increased user data access has proven to be another key driver of the growth in the RTB market. RTB utilizes this data for real-time delivery of advertisements whose basis is grounded on users' profiles, browsing patterns, interests, and demographics, where advertisers could bid over individual impressions. The audience would not be able to ignore advertisements with so much personal targeting, thus boosting the chances for engagement and conversion along with an eventual ROI.
With hundreds of millions of data, advertisers can make the most of using RTB to ensure that they are targeting exactly the right audience with their messages and offers. Such a capability for precision targeting is one of the most important benefits of RTB: it helps advertisers avoid wasting money on irrelevant impressions.
Additionally, through the analytics of real-time data, a continuous process of campaign optimization will be enabled; this is because advertisers can modify the bidding strategies and tactics, ad creatives, as well as the targeting parameters with the performance metrics.
Emergence of Connected TV (CTV) Advertising and Penetration of 5G is Creating Ample Opportunities for Real-time Bidding Market
Connected TV has been a significant opportunity for the RTB market. CTV has opened up new streams of digital advertisement inventory through streaming services and smart TVs. By utilizing real-time bids, advertisers can target specific audiences based on viewing preferences, demographics, or interests with highly personalized adverts in real-time during the session of steaming.
Today, with more people watching video on streaming platforms like Netflix, Hulu, or YouTube, it's an opportunity that is being capitalized on - and present themselves as an alternative, data-driven, yet dynamic form of advertising that can engage the viewer with the content while they watch on-demand media. Traditional TV ads do not have dynamic insertion based on real-time viewer behavior; hence, CTV ads work better.
More, the emergence of 5G technology opens up a transformative avenue for the real-time market, especially in mobile advertisements. Through the ability to ensure high-speed connectivity and ultra-low latency, 5G is poised to revolutionize the delivery of digital content, including advertisements, to mobiles: faster and more seamless rendering of adverts will ensure better user experience through minimized buffering and fewer delays in media delivery, which can very well attract mobile users.
Ad Fraud and Ad Blocking may affect Real-time Bidding Market Growth in the Projected Timeframe
The primary challenge with RTB is that it is prone to ad fraud, as the mischievous activities of bot traffic, fake clicks, and fake impressions inflate metrics and distort the campaigns. In RTB, bids placed in real-time are majorly based on fake bots that mimics user behavior thereby misleading advertisers to pay for ads that never saw a view from a real user. It is not only a waste of the money advertisers spend but also leads to lack of trust in programmatic advertising.
Increased use of ad-blocking software is another threat to industry expansion. Used by millions of people worldwide, ad blockers block ads from showing on a website or mobile app, meaning that programmatically bought ads will not be delivered to their intended recipients.
By relying on lots of real-time auctions for delivering certain ads to specific users, the extensive use of RTB reduces the opportunities for advertisers to bid on impressions, consequently lowering the effectiveness of RTB campaigns and also affecting publishers who solely rely on ad revenues. The threat is compounded by the rising concern users have for privacy, security, and annoying ads, which encourages the masses to adopt ad-blocking tools.
Principal Consultant
The global Real-time bidding market registered a CAGR of 17.2% during the historic period between 2019 and 2023. The growth of Real-time bidding application was progressive as it reached a value of USD 13,582.3 million in 2023 from USD 6,888.1 million in 2019.
The growth of the real-time bidding market can be attributed to the growth in adoption of programmatic advertising, increased consumption of digital media, and enhanced data analytics. In 2019, the RTB market saw a surge in programmatic advertising, accounting for a growing share of digital ad spend. As brands looked to gain more targeted exposure through advertisements, RTB opened up opportunities to tap into the power of real-time data for highly personalized placements.
The COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 accelerated digital transformation, and hence more of online content and e-commerce witnessed. As consumers spent more time on the digital platforms, advertisers invested highly in RTB so they can reach audiences in real-time.
Streaming services, mobile gaming, and online shopping also received high traffic, raising more inventory for RTB. Further growth in CTV advertising fueled the growth of RTB. This is because brands used programmatic bidding to advertise to viewers on streaming platforms.
Market grew notably post pandemic. Adoption became wider-cut across virtually all industries, even retail and entertainment, among others. Omnichannel marketing strategies grew in scale so that the advertiser may be able to reach the user through multiple touch points. The need to adjust targeting strategies became extreme due to cookieless tracking requirements of various privacy regulations.
Tier 1 companies capture significant market shares in the global market, up to 55% to 60%. The companies are typically multinational and have a huge budget with advanced technological features and a more diversified customer portfolio.
They also have competitive advantages because of their more advanced data analytics, machine learning algorithms, and vast user data, which can offer highly targeted and efficient RTB campaigns. Companies primarily belonging to Tier 1 are Alphabet (Google), Adobe Inc., WPP plc, Criteo S.A., Meta (Facebook), and Salesforce, Inc.
Tier 2 companies are the companies that possess the mid-size scale and create an immense presence in certain regional markets or verticals, but the global leadership is not that of a tier 1 player.
Though they do not hold similar scales or resources comparable to those of tier 1 players, they do hold a pretty good influence in their little niches due to their specialty offerings and innovation in that particular segment. Some the key players in this tier include; Magnite Inc., PubMatic, Yandex, Smaato, and LiveIntent.
Tier 3 companies are emerging small ventures or firms coming out from the real-time bidding market. They offer more basic types or niche-specific types at lower price points and enable organizations with finite budgets to connect. These companies tend to work in specific geographic markets or niches, where innovation and speed are at the core.
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The section below covers the application analysis for the Real-time bidding market for different countries. Market demand analysis on key countries in several regions of the globe, including the USA, Germany, China, India, Brazil, and UK is provided.
The United States is anticipated to remain at the forefront in North America, with a value share of 73.2% through 2034. In East Asia, South Korea is projected to witness a CAGR of 16.2% by 2034.
| Countries | Value CAGR (2024 to 2034) |
|---|---|
| USA | 18.4% |
| Germany | 16.3% |
| China | 19.1% |
| India | 19.4% |
| UK | 17.5% |
North America, spearheaded by the USA which currently holds around 78.2% share of the North America real-time bidding application in 2023. USA Real-time bidding market is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 18.4% throughout the forecast period.
The RTB market is experiencing significant growth in the USA due to the country's advanced digital advertising ecosystem and high internet penetration. The increasing adoption of programmatic advertising among brands and agencies allows for more efficient ad buying, leveraging vast amounts of data to target specific audiences effectively. Moreover, the rise of mobile and video advertising is expanding the available inventory for RTB, enhancing its relevance.
China’s Real-time bidding market is poised to exhibit a CAGR of 19.1% between 2024 and 2034. Currently, it holds the significant market share in the East Asia market, and the dominance is expected to continue through the forecast period.
Social commerce, wherein consumers make purchases directly from a mobile social media application, has fueled the rise in the demand curve for RTB in China as brands seek to capitalize real-time user engagement. On the other hand, AI and big data analytics assure ever higher precision in targeting and campaign efficiency. This interplay of technology with market trends combines to make China the center of the world's RTB market.
India’s Real-time bidding market is expected to witness a CAGR of 19.4% in the forecast period and hold considerable market share in South Asia & Pacific region through 2034.
The increasing number of new users onto the internet unfolds a tremendous digital landscape in which advertisers have become interested in RTB for its effectiveness and capacities in targeting in India.
Moreover, growth in e-commerce, and digital payment systems has further invited fertile ground of programmatic ads, as brands search to meet with customers in real-time. Indian digital platforms are also upgrading their offerings of RTB both for domestic and international advertisers to tap into diverse audiences.
The section contains information about the leading segments in the market. By auction, invited auction segment is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 19.2% throughout 2034. Additionally, the by application, retail & e-commerce segment is projected to expand at 19.5% till 2034.
| Auction | Open Auction |
|---|---|
| Value Share (2024) | 59.3% |
Open auction segment is expected to acquire share of 59.3% in the market in terms of auction in 2024. In this auction, advertisers can bid on vast pool of impressions in real time across multiple platforms. This enables them to reach a broader audience and maximize visibility. This competitive environment fosters transparency and efficiency, as multiple advertisers can simultaneously place bids, driving prices that reflect true market value.
| Application | Media & Entertainment |
|---|---|
| Value Share (2024) | 25.3% |
The media & entertainment segment is expected to capture share of 25.3% in 2024. RTB is extensively used in media and entertainment as it ensures timely and targeted advertising. This industry lives on catching the eyes of their viewers in a competitive marketplace and thus, RTB gives an advertiser information on reaching targeted groups based on viewer behavior, interests, and engagement patterns.
Key players operating in the Real-time bidding market are investing in advanced technologies and also entering into partnerships. Key Real-time bidding providers have also been acquiring smaller players to grow their presence to further penetrate the market across multiple regions.
Recent Application Developments in Real-time Bidding Market
In terms of auction, the application is divided into open auction and invited auction.
In terms of device, the application is divided into mobiles, desktops, and others.
The application is classified by application as media & entertainment, games, retail & e-commerce, travel & luxury, mobile apps, and others.
Key countries of North America, Latin America, East Asia, South Asia & Pacific, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, and Middle East & Africa (MEA) have been covered in the report.
The global Real-time bidding application is projected to witness CAGR of 18.5% between 2024 and 2034.
The global Real-time bidding application stood at USD 13,582.3 million in 2023.
The global Real-time bidding application is anticipated to reach USD 87,877.0 million by 2034 end.
South Asia & Pacific is set to record the highest CAGR of 19.3% in the assessment period.
The key players operating in the global Real-time bidding application include Alphabet (Google), Adobe Inc., WPP plc, Criteo S.A., Meta (Facebook), and Salesforce, Inc.
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