Apple iAd European Debut In December; Adverts From LG, Nespresso & More

Apple's iAd service is due to arrive in Europe come December 2010, having made its US debut back in July. The service – which slots in-app adverts into titles available through the Apple App Store – will launch in the UK and France in December, followed by Germany in January 2011, and feature ads from L'Oréal, Renault, Louis Vuitton, Nespresso, Perrier, Unilever, Citi, Evian, LG Display, AB InBev, Turkish Airlines and Absolute Radio.

Apple claims to have over half of the top 25 of leading US national advertisers on board, while user engagement times are apparently in excess of 60 seconds. That's in part down to the structure of the iAd content itself: rather than simple banners, adverts are presented as videos, mini-games and other interactive media, which load within the app while the core functionality is frozen in the background.

Industry response to iAd has been mixed, with recent reports suggesting that many advertisers find the Apple rates too high, but credit the company with bringing "sexiness" to mobile adverts. The service is built into iOS 4, on the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch.

Press Release:

Apple's iAd Coming to Europe in December

Revolutionary Mobile Advertising Network Will Launch in Europe with L'Oréal, Renault, Louis Vuitton, Nespresso, Perrier & Unilever

CUPERTINO, California—November 18, 2010—Apple® today announced it will expand its revolutionary iAd℠ mobile advertising network to the UK and France this December, with Germany to follow in January. iAd will launch in Europe with iAds from L'Oréal, Renault, Louis Vuitton, Nespresso, Perrier, Unilever, Citi, Evian, LG Display, AB InBev, Turkish Airlines and Absolute Radio. Since its US launch in July, iAd has emerged as a powerful new way for advertisers to reach millions of iPhone® and iPod touch® users right in their favorite apps, while providing a significant new revenue stream for developers. iAd has signed on over half of the top 25 leading US national advertisers in just four months,* with a projected 21 percent share of US mobile display advertising revenue for 2010 according to research firm IDC.**

"We're thrilled to add leading global brands to the iAd Network in Europe and create even more great opportunities for developers," said Andy Miller, Apple's vice president of iAd. "In just four months, we've doubled the number of advertisers on the network and thousands of developers now have a valuable new source of revenue."

"As the world leader in the beauty business, L'Oréal aims to create the most meaningful connections between its brands and its customers, so iAd was a natural choice," said Marc Menesguen, L'Oréal's Head of strategic marketing. "We're thrilled by the quality, the interactivity and the depth of iAd's user experience, giving us an unparalleled opportunity to reach and serve the most engaged and discerning customers at the digital forefront of beauty, hence our choice of Lancôme to lead our iAd campaign."

iAd, which is built into iOS 4, lets users stay within their current app while engaging with an ad, even while watching a video, playing a game or using in-ad purchase to download an app or buy iTunes® content. With user engagement times averaging more than 60 seconds per visit, iAds combine the narrative quality of TV ads with the interactivity of digital for something entirely new.

Advertisers can learn more at advertising.apple.com. Developers who join the iAd Network can easily incorporate a variety of advertising formats into their apps. Developers will receive an industry standard 60 percent of the iAd Network revenue, which is paid via iTunes Connect. Developers can visit developer.apple.com/iad to join the iAd Network or to learn more about the iAd platform.

* Advertising Age "100 Leading National Advertisers" rankings for 2009 by spend, June 20, 2010.

** US mobile display advertising 2010 forecast, published by BusinessWeek.com, September 26, 2010.