IBM predicts end of the ad world as you know it

IBM Global Business Services has released a report predicting that there will be more changes in the advertising industry in the next five years than there has been in the last half a century.

by Helen Leggatt

The adoption of digital is changing the face of the world, and that of the advertising industry, too. Niche and personalized advertising across a multitude of platforms, including mobile, will replace the mass marketing of the last few decades, concludes IBM.

The report, titled “The End of Advertising as We Know It”, details four major shift drivers affecting the ad industry and can be downloaded in full.

The report summary states, “There is no question that the future of advertising will look radically different from the past. The push for control of attention, creativity, measurements and inventory will reshape the advertising value chain and shift the balance of power.”

Around 30 percent of ad revenues will shift to online ad exchanges over the next few years. “For both incumbent and new players, it is imperative to plan for multiple consumer futures, craft agile strategies and build new capabilities before advertising as we know it disappears,” said the report summary.