Facebook and Twitter On Top, Google and Yahoo Slip in 2017 Predictions for U.S. Digital Market

There’s no doubt about it: spending on digital display advertising in the U.S. is definitely traveling to the social media sites.

That market, which will total $27.05 billion this year, according eMarketer estimates, will change again by 2017, when the “U.S. digital display ad expenditure will reach $37.36 billion, (with) Facebook and Twitter together accounting for 33.7 percent of the market, up from 30.2 percent this year.”

“In 2015, Facebook’s U.S. digital display ad revenues will reach $6.82 billion, just over one-quarter of the total market, and Twitter will take 5.0 percent share, increasing its digital display ad revenues to $1.34 billion,” according to eMarketer. “By 2017, Facebook’s portion will continue to creep upward, reaching 26.9 percent, and Twitter will take 6.8 percent.”

Whither Twitter and Google?

“Notably, Twitter will surpass Yahoo in total U.S. digital display ad revenues for the first time in 2015,” eMarketer posits. “Even though we project that Yahoo will see positive display ad growth this year for the first time since we started tracking the company’s ad revenues in 2009, its market share will continue a rapid decline, falling to 4.6 percent in 2015, down from 5.5 percent last year and 7.2 percent in 2013.”

Google could maintain its market position behind Facebook, according to the projections, but its share of U.S. digital display ad revenues are expected to dip from 13.7 percent in 2014 to 13.0 percent this year—and down to as much as just 11.1 percent by 2017.

What’s driving Facebook and Twitter gains in the digital display market? Mobile advertising, of course.

“For the first time in 2015, mobile will surpass desktop in display ad spending in the U.S., increasing from $9.65 billion in 2014 to $14.67 billion,” says eMarketer. “Meanwhile, desktop display ad spend will decline in 2015, falling to $12.38 billion, from $12.56 billion last year.”