Amazon’s ad business is worth almost $3 billion. The company reported in third-quarter earnings today that “other” revenue, which is primarily made up of ad sales, is now worth $2.5 billion, an increase of 123 percent from the year prior.
In the second quarter, Amazon had said that ad revenue was up 129 percent to almost $2.2 billion.
In the past few months, Amazon took a major step in consolidating and simplifying its ad products, merging everything into one platform called Amazon advertising so advertisers can buy everything in the same place.
Marketers now see Amazon as a part of the triopoly, although the company’s overall advertising prowess lags far behind the other two legs of the triopoly, Google and Facebook. Google parent Alphabet, which reported that CPC on Google properties is down 28 percent, had total revenue at $34 billion for the quarter, with the majority of that being advertising. Facebook reports third-quarter earnings next week.
Amazon’s ad business, which some estimates project will reach $50 billion in the next decade, is still a small part of Amazon’s overall business, which was $56.6 billion this quarter. Perhaps because of that, both buyers and brands still have gripes about how slowly the platform is improving. They report that the company still has a way to go with the basics, with somewhat rudimentary toolsets, campaign data and some inconsistencies with how ads are bought and what data you get back.
According to data by Teikametrics, which helps brands advertise on Amazon, 32 percent of revenue for brands that sell on Amazon is now driven by advertising on Amazon. And brands have increasing ad spend overall on Amazon by 250 percent since the third quarter of 2017.
More in Marketing
Pitch deck: Here’s how Amazon has been selling its DSP so far this year
The 24-page pitch deck for Amazon’s demand-side platform is telling: it puts its off-Amazon’s ambitions in black and white.
Amid sports marketing’s gold rush, some brands are targeting niche fan communities
As the ceiling on sport sponsorship investment rises, room for non-standard approaches is also growing for a variety of brands.
Startups try to make smart bets with marketing budgets ahead of a potentially volatile summer
While summer might be a slower season, it’s an important time for brands and retailers to ensure they’ve still got customers’ attention.