Week in review: Apps are shifting away from ad dependency in 2022

Read our top stories of the week. December 12, 2021 /ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo= [Week in review: Apps are shifting away from ad dependency in 2022](/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) Making money through ads has gotten harder, so many developers will place bets that consumers are ready to sign up for even more subscriptions and to buy things directly through their apps. Subscriptions will spread to new areas. The early 2021 arrival of Apple’s AppTrackingTransparency (ATT) framework limited the collection of iOS user data, effectively making the personalized advertising that has driven app economies much less cost-effective. Some app developers—particularly those in the gaming category—have banked on consumers’ increased comfort with subscriptions as a result. Sensor Tower estimates that 29% of the top 100 games by US App Store revenue monetized via subscriptions in 2020, up from 17% in 2018. Expect to see this trend continue in the coming year with more subscription-based apps in gaming, media, fitness/wellness, and perhaps even social media, where Twitter Blue represents an early tentative effort. Even so, consumers may be nearing a limit on how many subscriptions they’re willing to buy. Social media apps will double down on ecommerce. Most have already introduced some payment options, with Facebook also expanding Facebook Pay for use outside its platform. Facebook, TikTok, Snap, and YouTube are also exploring new ecommerce media that can be accessed via mobile—such as livestream video, clickable images, and influencer stores—many of which can produce direct revenue streams. We expect US social commerce sales to increase 24.9% in 2022 to nearly $46 billion. Financial companies will attempt to build super apps. These firms will try to integrate elements of commerce into their financial services portfolio apps. Klarna and PayPal both revamped their apps in fall 2021 with additional shopping features, but Square, Affirm, Revolut, and others are also making noise about becoming super apps. In the future, these apps will likely add additional shopping, travel, and health marketplace features. [Read the full article.](/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) [Automating ecommerce operations to drive business growth](=/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) As sales increase and scale across multiple channels, and business operations become more complex, automation is key to driving growth and keeping up with the pace of change. [Read this article, contributed and sponsored by Linnworks.](=/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) /ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo= [Digital audio market sees inflection as advertising grows in share](/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) After several years of growth in share, US digital audio subscription revenues will peak at 63.9% of total digital audio revenues in 2022. Subscription revenues will continue to grow after that, but will make up slightly less of the digital audio ad revenue pie as ad spending grows in share. [Read the full article.](/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) [chart-image](/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) [Reimagining Retail: Our retail analysts went holiday shopping. What did they learn?]() On the inaugural episode of this brand new Behind the Numbers show, Reimagining Retail, we sent our analysts out holiday shopping to see how things looked and felt to them. Co-hosts and principal analysts at Insider Intelligence Suzy Davidkhanian and Andrew Lipsman discuss how the holiday shopping season is going so far, what their personal experiences were like, and what they found to be the good, the bad, and the surprising of in-store shopping this year. ["Behind the Numbers" is made possible by Basis Technologies. Listen in.]() [chart-image]() [Appealing to the Gen Z shopper in Canada]() Canada’s Generation Z—the kids and young adults in the country born between 1997 and 2012—is a lucrative demographic for brands, especially as it ages into higher levels of income. [Read the full article.]() [chart-image]() [Podcast: The future of Amazon ads, Walmart preps for battle, and is the internet becoming QVC?](/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) On this episode, we discuss Amazon's role in the trend of retail media advertising and some of the new advertising features we can expect to see from the online shopping giant. We then talk about Walmart's readiness to take on Amazon and whether America's internet is turning into a QVC-like shopping channel. Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer principal analyst at Insider Intelligence Andrew Lipsman. ["Behind the Numbers" is made possible by Basis Technologies. Listen in.](/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) [chart-image](/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) [A sustainability strategy will be a need-to-have for retailers](=/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) Sustainability, no longer merely a buzzword, will be critical to how brands and retailers respond to changing consumer expectations about product sourcing, packaging, and delivery. [Read the full article.](=/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) [chart-image](=/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) [The Weekly Listen: Americans' attention, ultra-fast delivery, and the ideal amount of ads]() On this episode, we discuss how Americans' attention shifted in 2021 (and what that means for the year ahead), the promise of ultra-fast delivery, the ideal amount of ads you should show viewers, whether gaming is more popular than TV for Gen Z, Facebook testing giving more control of the newsfeed to users, the office of the future, how far away the average American adult lives from their mother, and more. Tune in to the discussion with eMarketer analyst Blake Droesch and principal analysts at Insider Intelligence Suzy Davidkhanian and Paul Verna. ["Behind the Numbers" is made possible by Basis Technologies. Listen in.]() [chart-image]() [7 takeaways from Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2021](=/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) Consumers spent $10.7 billion on Cyber Monday, 1.4% less than in 2020 but still making it the year’s biggest online shopping day. Here are top trends to watch this holiday season with some takeaways below the graphic. [Read the full article.](=/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) [chart-image](=/ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo=) /ODY3LVNMRy05MDEAAAGBTeynnOwBbZ5OCi-vXoyWwbykEmeQ-_g1R9oAJ7B0-rBXfZbSYXIdHwGc5vT-xnR0jzXddIo= ©2021 Insider Intelligence Inc. 11 Times Square, New York, NY 10036 eMarketer Week in Review is published by Insider Intelligence Inc. 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