The ten largest online publishers own a disproportionate amount of the world's web traffic. These busy sites, including subsidiary holdings, account for billions of unique visitors per month. They also comprise the most sought-after ad space in the world. However - and while the recession has played a role in the decline of the display CPM major publishers could acquire - an average $10 CPM, has in many cases, dwindled to $1CPM.
For many publishers, display has simply not paid off. Search advertising revenues, however, have steadily increased during this same time. And, with roughly 90% of the major publishers' revenue being derived from low-paying (and in many cases remnant) advertising networks, many would argue that it is just a matter of time before many of these sites begin charging users to access content; either on a subscription, or pay-as-you-go basis. The alternative, of course, requires an alternative approach to advertising -- the fact of the matter is that publishers are not in the business of providing free content if they are unable to monetize their traffic.
(click image to enlarge)
Comments
Comments are closed.