The coronavirus pandemic and changes set to be implemented in the forthcoming iOS 14 are the latest shocks to an evolving app economy. This report will look at how these changes have altered developer monetization strategies and advertiser options.

It looks likely that apps and other service providers will pursue more varied monetization strategies this year. Traditionally, apps mostly pursued two strategies: in-app purchases and in-app advertising. Over the past couple of years, many developers have combined the two, but we’re increasingly seeing them use subscription-based models, as well as coupons or other incentives for viewing advertising, such as rewarded video. This shift will continue into 2021.

Creators now have more ways than ever to make a living online. This report explores how brands should approach and engage creators for partnerships in the new monetization ecosystem.

If one thing became clear about Instagram in Q4, it’s this: The app is determined to take and keep its share of the social commerce pie. As of December, all of Instagram’s features—the Feed, Stories, Live, IGTV, and Reels—are shoppable. Influencers will benefit, too; the platform has also released a series of updates to help amplify branded content. Monetization.

Tipping comes to Clubhouse: The social audio app will now let users tip hosts, likely a play to keep creators on the platform as they’re in danger of being poached by bigger players like Twitter and Twitch.

US mobile ad spending will reach $96.07 billion this year, lower than our pre-pandemic estimate of $105.34 billion. eMarketer principal analyst at Insider Intelligence Yoram Wurmser joins host Nicole Perrin to discuss why despite this year's blip, mobile ad monetization is on a better trajectory than before, how advertisers will deal with the SKAdNetwork, and what the future holds for contextual in-app advertising.

As much as consumer behavior and the wider economic situation influence the app economy, Apple and Google do as well. With their commissions on in-app purchases (IAPs) and subscriptions, and with their rules surrounding data and advertising, they can make or break different monetization strategies. The changes set to take effect in early 2021 under Apple’s iOS 14, especially, have upended app monetization.

According to a March 2019 survey from mobile ad and app monetization company Tapjoy, 69% of US consumers said they would rather give up social media apps or TV than lose their favorite mobile games.

Some quick-service restaurants (QSRs) and retailers, for instance, now offer discounts to sandwiches or products that are redeemable on their websites, which is a notable shift in the past year, according to Jonathan Harrop, senior director of global marketing and communications at app marketing and monetization platform AdColony. “There's no App Store middleman,” he said.

The publishing platform could help Facebook entice more creators to use its app, while also providing more legitimate news sources to its users—a win-win for the company. Monetization Product and Ad Targeting Updates. Here are the key monetization product and targeting updates for Facebook in Q1 2021:. Sticker Ads in Creator Stories.

As more people watch video content on their mobile devices, the nature of mobile video monetization is changing. This is particularly the case for programmatic advertising, which we define as an automated, technology-driven method of buying, selling or fulfilling digital display ad placements. Overall, mobile video ads sold programmatically generated $19.93 billion in revenues in 2019 in the US and will generate $24.87 billion in 2020.

eMarketer principal analyst Debra Aho Williamson and junior analyst at Insider Intelligence Blake Droesch discuss Snapchat's surprising Q3 earnings. They then talk about the current TikTok debacle, how Facebook is monetizing WhatsApp, and the development of Facebook Gaming.

“The only drama is what percentage of web monetization exists in each of those three tiers,” Kershaw said. The situation on the iOS side differs because Apple will soon require each app to ask users if they would like to opt in to sharing the IDFA. Without an explicit opt-in to share an IDFA, app developers and advertisers won’t be allowed to do any type of user-level cross-channel tracking.

Still, as both apps approach 90 million US users, neither platform will rival Instagram's overwhelming influence. More like this:. Report: Influencer Monetization 2021. Article: How in-app shopping could change TikTok for marketers. Article: More Gen Zers now use TikTok than Instagram in the US.

It’s easy to grow and monetize low-quality apps using fake traffic at higher CPMs. Measurement is difficult, and transparency standards like app-ads.txt are still nascent and not widely adopted. CTV also often has more complex monetization rights and inventory sharing agreements, so you need to be extra diligent in connecting the dots across the supply chain.

How TikTok shopping would change the app: TikTok is testing a shopping tab, which would make ecommerce more prominent on the app, strengthen its performance marketing options, and maybe get marketers to stop seeing it as just an experimental platform.

The New York Times gained 669,000 digital subscribers in Q2 2020—pushing digital revenues into the majority for the first time, per our recent Mobile App Monetization 2020 report. Read More. US Disney+ Viewers on Track to Surpass Hulu by 2024. Apple's Subscription Bundle is Economical—But May Not be Enticing to Those Not Already in its Ecosystem.