This document analyzes the European programmatic advertising market in 2014. It finds that the total programmatic market grew 57.6% to €3.65 billion, with desktop display dominating but mobile programmatic growing 240.2% and video more than doubling. By 2014, all formats generated a double-digit share of revenue programmatically, with desktop display at 39.3% and mobile display at 27.3%. While Western Europe had the lion's share, Central and Eastern Europe surged in programmatic advertising growth.

1. European Programmatic
Market Sizing 2014
IAB Europe, September 2015

2. Advertising revenue that is generated through transactional or workflow automation
mechanisms embedded in an infrastructure that relies on a set of rules applied by software
and algorithms that draw on data, commonly known as ‘ad tech’. Following the IAB’s
proposed taxonomy, ‘programmatic’ here is an aggregate category that is composed of four
discrete transactional models, each of which we consider a sub-set:
– 1. Automated Guaranteed
– 2. Unreserved Fixed Rate
– 3. Invitation-Only Auction
– 4. Open Auction.
Advertising revenues are recognized as ‘programmatic’ whenever any of those
mechanisms applies, irrespective of the inventory owner’s awareness of their involvement.
This means that revenue is also considered programmatic if inventory that is originally sold
to an intermediary through non-programmatic means (e.g. agency bulk buying) is re-sold to
an end-buyer programmatically. Revenue is recognized as programmatic irrespective of
whether the inventory owner acts directly or indirectly via an intermediary.
Defining ‘programmatic’

3. A €3bn programmatic market
for desktop banner display
1,841
2,900
0
500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
3,000
3,500
2013 2014
Europe: Programmatic Desktop Display NAR* (€m)
+57.6%
NAR = net advertising revenue; display data excl. mobile and video
Source: IAB Europe and IHS

4. Mobile programmatic explodes
230
552
0
100
200
300
400
500
600
Progammatic Mobile Display NAR (€m)
+240.2%
NAR = net advertising revenue; display data excl. desktop and excl. video
Source: IAB Europe and IHS
2013 2014

5. Programmatic video market more than doubles
74
205
0
50
100
150
200
250
2013 2014
Progammatic Video Display NAR (€m)*
NAR = net advertising revenue; desktop and mobile video
+176.6%
Source: IAB Europe and IHS

6. Within €3.65bn programmatic total, desktop display
dominates
0
500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
3,000
3,500
4,000
2013 2014
Programmatic formats in context (€m)
Video
Mobile Display
Desktop Display
Total: €3657m
Total: €2145m
Source: IAB Europe and IHS
+70.5%

7. All formats now generate double-digit
share of total revenue programmatically
25.7%
17.5%
6.1%
39.3%
27.3%
12.1%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
Desktop Display Mobile Display Video
Share of format revenue that is generated programmatically
2013
2014
Source: IAB Europe and IHS

8. Western Europe has lion’s share,
but Central & Eastern Europe surges
0
500
1,000
1,500
2,000
2,500
3,000
3,500
4,000
2013 2014
Total programmatic NAR: regional trends
Central & Eastern Europe
Western Europe
Source: IAB Europe and IHS

9. Contact:
Alison Fennah, Executive Business Advisor, IAB Europe –
fennah@iabeurope.eu
Daniel Knapp, Senior Director Advertising Research, IHS –
daniel.knapp@ihs.com
@IABEurope
IAB Europe
www.iabeurope.eu
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