Smartphone Users in Australia Grudgingly Accept Ads

It’s no secret that consumers often find advertising intrusive?something marketers typically want to avoid, as it can hurt rather than help their messaging efforts. In Australia, smartphone users find ads on their devices particularly bothersome. But they may be worth it.

According to April 2015 research from Deloitte, smartphone users in Australia overwhelmingly agree that ads on their mobile devices are more intrusive than TV commercials or digital ads they see on laptop computers. Respondents ages 32 to 48 were the least likely to complain, but with 71% judging smartphone ads as more intrusive, that’s not saying much in their favor.

Overall, nearly eight in 10 smartphone users in the country agreed it was a channel for more-intrusive advertising.

But half of smartphone users recognize they get worthwhile benefits in return?namely, free content.

The youngest respondents were most likely to consider the trade-off a good one: 63% of those ages 14 to 25 and 70% of those 26 to 31 thought smartphone ads were a fair exchange for free content.

Respondents of all ages were less likely to say the same specifically about location-based ads on their smartphones, however. Overall, just 38% of respondents were willing to receive such ads. The youngest respondents, again, were the most open to them.

eMarketer estimates that advertisers in Australia will spend $1.36 billion on paid mobile placements this year, up 60.0% from 2014 spending levels. Mobile internet ad spending will represent 29.0% of digital ad spending and 12.6% of total paid media spending in the country this year.