Worldwide advertising revenue for Amazon will reach more than $800 million in 2013, as the company leverages its rich customer data and deals with the challenges of mobile advertising, according to a new forecast from eMarketer.
“We’ve been looking at Amazon as a business for a while now, and at this point we felt there was enough data available from enough third parties that we could develop a statistical model that we were confident…represented their business,” VP of communications Clark Fredricksen told AdExchanger.
For 2013, eMarketer forecasts that Amazon’s worldwide ad revenues – which are only a part of the online retailer’s total revenue – will be $835 million, a 36.9% increase over $610 million from 2012.
For the US, eMarketer forecasts that ad revenues will reach $660 million, a 46.8% increase from the $450 million the company earned from ads in 2012. The company reports overall revenue in its quarterly earnings reports but includes advertising as part of its “other” category.
Amazon has been working with advertisers to expand its advertising offerings, but Fredricksen noted that the company hasn’t been particularly aggressive. The company’s plans for growth, including the introduction of an ad network, along with the challenges facing many publishers when it comes to mobile, will be variables in how much Amazon makes from advertising down the line. eMarketer plans to release a full forecasting report on Amazon in the coming weeks.
“The bulk of display and search publishers have faced some challenges as consumers shift time from desktop to mobile and tablet, [challenges] including small screen sizes, the necessity to create brand-new ad products that are integrated into the core user experience and ad pricing,” Fredricksen said. “While Amazon has a strong presence on all devices, particularly compared to most retailers, they still may face the challenges that all ad publishers face when it comes to growing revenue from mobile advertising.”
