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Prevailing Mobile In-Application

Advertising Formats
version 1.0
Released 19 July 2010
Prepared by the Mobile Advertising Committee of the Interactive Advertising Bureau

Introduction
Few new media platforms of the last five years have generated as much excitement as applications (“apps”) on mobile or
portable devices. Combining the portability and highly personal nature of a mobile device with a relatively large, full color,
high-resolution screen and immersive and intuitive user interfaces built on touch and gesture has created a unique environment
for media companies and marketers to reach consumers. Despite low market penetration relative to feature phones,
smartphones far outpace their less capable cousins when it comes to accessing mobile data services. And the proliferation of
apps on these devices, tailor-made to offer rich experiences despite the limitations of mobile data networks, is likely to drive
only more data usage over time.
App business models vary; however, many today (and particularly those from established media brands) are supported at
least partially by advertising. Marketers and agencies looking to add in-app advertising to campaigns enjoy a broad array of
potential partners. In many cases, they also must confront a significant diversity of devices, operating systems, and operator
networks, as well as a fast-evolving landscape of ad formats and capabilities. This document will provide a basic guide to the
ad formats offered on today’s most prominent mobile app platforms, although it will not address all of the challenges created
by that diversity.

Methodology
In order to provide some guidance to the market, the IAB fielded a simple survey to members who sell in-app ads, asking them
to summarize the ad formats they currently support, across seven different platforms for mobile/portable devices.
App Platforms Included
• Android • Palm
• Blackberry • Symbian
• iPad • Windows Mobile
• iPhone/iPod Touch
We received sufficient data to make some platform-specific observations for four of these platforms: Android, Blackberry, iPad,
and iPhone/iPod Touch. Fourteen IAB member companies, including branded publishers and advertising networks, responded
with ad formats they support:
Participating Publishers
• 4INFO • Millennial Media
• Associated Press • MyWebGrocer
• Cars.com • NBC Universal Digital Media
• CNN.com • Pandora
• Crain’s Chicago Business/ Chicagobusiness.com • Weather Channel Interactive
• ESPN.com • Weatherbug
• JumpTap • Wall Street Journal Digital
The data summarized here are not a scientific sample of formats offered across the entire industry, nor basis and do not
purport to be representative of the entire market. However, we believe that this document can serve as a benchmark,
highlighting points of emerging similarity among app providers (e.g., banner sizes on smartphones are already trending
toward general consistency) and points of significant difference (e.g., what constitutes a “full page” ad on an iPhone). We
conclude with some general best practices for marketers and agencies planning in-application ads as part of a campaign.
The rest of this report will review the key trends we observe in the current data, across all app platforms and then for the
individual platforms for which a sufficient number of participants provided responses. Our survey did not garner sufficient
data on Palm, Symbian, or Windows Mobile apps to discuss ad formats on those platforms separately; however the general
conclusions in the next section are applicable based on what little data we received on apps on those platforms.

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Smartphone Points of Commonality
Across all the smartphone application platforms in the survey, the IAB observed the following key points in common:
Banner sizes are mostly harmonious. At present, the surest way to run a campaign across smartphone app platforms
is to stick to the largest of the 6:1 Mobile Marketing Association mobile banner sizes1, 300x50. A majority of the participants
in this survey support 300x50s directly, and those that don’t generally have a size slightly larger where a 300x50 will fit okay
with black or white bars around it.
However, the current iPhone screen is 320x480,2 and increasingly other smartphones on the market offer screens the same
size or larger, so a 300x50 ad leaves potential space empty.
The second most common smartphone “banner” size, 320x50, addresses that, offering an extra 1,000 pixels relative to a
300x50, and taking up the full width of smartphone screens of iPhone dimensions (in portrait mode). We also note that a
couple of participants in our survey take the MMA standard 6:1 aspect ratio and apply that to a 320 pixel width to give an
unofficial “XXL” MMA size of 320x53. This is the largest banner-type ad size observed in this survey.
In the other direction, we note several formats along the lines of 320x48, 320x40, and 320x30, that go full width for many
smartphones but skinnier.
300px

40 px

10 px ]- 3 px
20px
RELATIVE SIZES OF 300X50, 320X50, 320X53, AND 320X40 RECTANGLES

No landscape banners. No publisher in the survey 300px


currently offers a landscape-oriented banner (for example,
480x75) for a smartphone app. The IAB expects that
landscape ads may start to appear as apps meant to
be used in that mode grow more common. Given that
even today apps increasingly work in both portrait and
landscape modes, the IAB speculates that one possible
market evolution will be for in-app campaigns to design
distinct and complementary portrait and landscape
banners that run simultaneously.
File weights vary greatly. If the dimensions of
in-app banners are fairly consistent, file weights expected
by publishers are not. 5KB, 7.5KB, 9KB, 10KB, and even
20px
15KB are all accepted as sizes for static banners. The
70 px
best practice for buyers looking to build once and run
across a variety of app publishers would seem to be to
work with and follow the recommendations of a mobile
ad network, or else to build as light as possible.
320x480 is the most common full screen size 160 px
across platform. In addition to the banner, the full
screen format is also fairly common across app platforms.
320x480, the pre-iPhone 4 iPhone/iPod screen
dimensions, is the most common size specified across
RELATIVE SIZES OF 320X480, A 320X320, AND A 300X250 RECTANGLES

1 The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) has published creative guidelines for mobile Web ads since 2003. Due to differences in feature phone
screen resolutions, The MMA has focused on aspect ratios as the heart of its banner guidelines, establishing 8 banner sizes using variations on 6:1 and 4:1 ratios.
The idea is that a publisher supporting, say, 6:1 banners would expect 4 sizes of creative from an agency (the sizes specified by the guidelines), from which it
would automatically serve as appropriate to the size of the cellphone screen being used to browse the content. See: http://mmaglobal.com/mobileadvertising.
pdf.
2 The new iPhone 4 model substantially increases screen resolution, to 960x640.

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platforms; however, as some publishers note, non-iPhone platforms typically support a variety of screen dimensions, and so
agencies may need to be prepared to build creative to suit if they are looking to flight a full-screen ad across multiple devices
or device platforms.
Expandables are available but vary widely. Most of the in-app ad platforms for which we received data support at
least one, and usually more, expandable formats. However, they are quite diverse at present, and no single format or formats
seems to have significant support. This is an area where multiple formats are desirable. Over time ad effectiveness research,
as well as advertiser and publisher satisfaction, will help to determine which of these sizes should become more widely
adopted and perhaps standardized.

50 px 50 px

300 px
250 px

480 px

430 px

RELATIVE SIZES OF A 320X50 THAT EXPANDS TO A 320X480, AND A 300X50 THAT EXPANDS TO A 300X300

Platform-Specific Findings and Observations


This section offers observations on four application platforms for which the IAB received sufficient data to draw general
inferences about market trends.

iPhone/iPod Touch
All 14 of the respondents to this survey offered an iPhone/iPod Touch app, and so it comes as no surprise that this platform
sees the broadest diversity of creative sizes supported currently.
As with the other smartphone platforms examined, banners ads on iPhones are most commonly either 300x50 or 320x50.
However, several variant banner sizes exist on the platform. Larger ad sizes show great variability as well: this survey
captured no less than eight such ad sizes, ranging from 300x100 up to full-screen 320x480.

Android
Formats offered for Android are very typical of those for smartphones generally. The IAB’s survey found three different
“full screen” formats (and at least one respondent noted that sizes will vary further with device-specific screen resolution
differences). It also found 6 different banner resolutions, most of which were a constant 320 pixels wide with varying heights.

Blackberry
The diversity of Blackberry models underscores the potential issues marketers and agencies face as app platforms proliferate
and fragment further. Already at least one publisher offers ad sizes unique to specific models, such as the 240x50, “for Pearl
81xx/82xx and Flip only.” The IAB hopes that this will become less necessary (and less common) over time. Model-specific
creative formats will greatly increase marketer costs, likely deterring spending on in-app ads.

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iPad
Few generalizations can be made at this stage in the evolution
of in-application ads on tablets. The iPad has sparked significant
enthusiasm among publishers and advertisers alike, but it remains far
too new a platform to make too many generalizations about trends
in iPad in-app ads.
We note that sizes appearing in early iPad apps represent a mix of
IAB standard sizes from the Web (e.g., Leaderboards and Medium
Rectangles) and MMA standard sizes (e.g., 300x50s, etc.), mainly
found on apps ported from the iPhone.
We also note that at least two publishers are offering ad sizes that
are larger than the 1024x768 screen size of the device itself, up to
1024x1024, albeit with a much smaller “safe area.” These super-
large sizes are far bigger than any of the current IAB standards for
Web ads, and even bigger than the three ad formats the Online
Publishers Association (OPA) released in 2009.3
As tablet-based apps and their associated advertising formats
evolve, it will be extremely interesting to see how these super-giant
formats evolve as well, and what lessons (if any) PC-based Web
advertising might learn from tablet advertising.

Emerging Best Practices


In addition to the ad sizes described in this document, the IAB
members who participated in this study note a number of emerging
best practices for in-app advertisers. Members of the IAB Mobile
Committee urge advertiser to take them into account above and
beyond designing appropriately sized creative.
• Build mobile-specific landing pages for in-app ad campaigns. A number of publishers have described
scenarios where advertisers have launched in-app ads that link through to pre-existing websites that require Flash to view or
navigate. Given that most smartphones today don’t run Flash, this is clearly a bad idea. The IAB’s Mobile Buyers Guide4
observes that landing pages for mobile Web ad campaigns should be designed with mobile in mind. This applies equally to
in-application ads running on smartphones.
• Avoid overly heavy creative and landing pages. When planning campaigns for smartphones, and
particularly for media tablets like the iPad, agencies and marketers are likely to want to design creative and “landing pages”
(that appear either within the app or within a separate browser environment) that take full advantage of the screen size and
rich interactivity of these devices. However, it’s vital to remain conscious of the fact that creative and landing pages will be
delivered over 3G networks which, while generally reasonably fast, are neither as fast nor as reliable as wired broadband
connections. Lighter file sizes are therefore highly recommended to ensure an optimal user experience.
• Don’t repurpose smartphone—or web–creative for in-app ads on tablets. While the devices are
superficially similar, and may even run the same operating system, simply re-using smartphone app creative (or bigger versions
of the same creative) on tablet apps represents a huge missed opportunity. There’s a good reason why, aside from apps
ported directly from iPhones, the creative sizes this survey identified for iPads don’t correspond neatly to those on iPhones: the
devices are very, very different from one another. Similarly, just because a tablet app may support an IAB Medium Rectangle,
that is not a reason to simply repurpose Web creative. Doing so may cut costs in the short term, but it ignores the potentially
rich experience an ad can deliver on these devices.

3 See: http://www.online-publishers.org/opa-ad-units.
4 See: http://www.iab.net/mobile_buyers_guide

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Next Steps
Any effort to promote simplification of ad formats must make it easier or cheaper to produce creative for the medium, without
stifling the creativity of those designing content or advertising for that medium. At this stage, the in-app ad landscape is too
new and dynamic to be ready for creative standards.
The IAB intends this document to offer guidance to both sellers and buyers of in-app ads. We plan to maintain this survey as a
living thing, responsive to the astounding pace of change in the in-app ad landscape. We envision updating it as new formats
emerge on the scene and gain traction, and as devices and platforms evolve (we note that the iPhone 4’s screen resolution will
render much of this document obsolete if that device catches on and older iPhone models leave the market). We’d also like to
highlight not just the more popular formats, but also new and innovative ones as well.
Since 2007, the IAB has maintained a database of Web creative specs submitted by publishers, with the aim of making
it easier for buyers to know which publishers support what formats. This helps reduce friction points between publishers
and advertisers, and improves agencies’ and marketers’ ability to create and deliver online ads. As the in-app advertising
environment evolves, this document could potentially evolve to become an equivalent database for in-app ad formats. We
welcome comments from marketers, agencies, publishers, device makers, and everyone else serving this ecosystem on ways to
deliver more utility from this survey.

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About the IAB’s Mobile Committee
The Mobile Advertising Committee of the IAB is comprised of over 140 member companies dedicated to helping develop and
expand the mobile space as a viable advertising platform. The committee works to educate marketers and agencies on the
strength of mobile advertising as a marketing vehicle. A full list of Committee member companies can be found at:
www.iab.net/mobile_advertising_committee

About the IAB


The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) is comprised of more than 460 leading media and technology companies who are
responsible for selling 86% of online advertising in the United States. On behalf of its members, the IAB is dedicated to the
growth of the interactive advertising marketplace, of interactive’s share of total marketing spend, and of its members’ share
of total marketing spend. The IAB educates marketers, agencies, media companies and the wider business community about
the value of interactive advertising. Working with its member companies, the IAB evaluates and recommends standards and
practices and fields critical research on interactive advertising. Founded in 1996, the IAB is headquartered in New York City
with a Public Policy office in Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit www.iab.net.

IAB Contact Information


Joe Laszlo
Director of Research
joe@iab.net

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Appendix

PLATFORM: iPad

Screen resolution: 1024x768


Ad Format Prevalence File Weights Notes
1024x1024 1 full screen w/ 724x724 safe area
1024x876 1 full screen w/ 768x620 safe area
1024x768 1 na
742x206 1 100K overlay; works in both landscape and
portrait
728x90 1 na expandable
728x90 2 30K, <40K, <80K (rich IAB Leaderboard
media)
660x80 expands to 1 30-50K
660x160
512x512 1 interstitial or launch ad
320x53 1
320x50 1 rich media banner
300x250 3 30K, <40K, <80K (rich IAB Med Rectangle
media)
185x31 1 20K sponsor logo, launches overlay ad
Pre-roll video w/ 300x50 1 video
leavebehind
video pre-roll 1
IAB Standard Units 1 na

PLATFORM: iPhone

Screen resolution: 320x480


Ad Format Prevalence File Weights Notes
320x480 2 <40K std <20K init <50k interstitial
max rich media
320x415 1 na interstitial
320x400 1 interstitial or launch ad
320x320 1 50K full screen ad
320x250 1 50K full screen ad
320x100 minimizes to 1 15K minimizes after 2-3 seconds
320x50
320x53 2 <6K std, <9K anim <20K “MMA XXL 6:1”
rich media initial
320x50 expands to 1 20K
320x480
320x50 expands to 1
320x416
320x50 6 7.5Kx2, 10K, 15K static
320x50 4 10K, 20K rich media
320x48 1 20K static or animated
320x30 1 10K
300x250 1 30K

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300x100 1 rich media
300x50 9 5K, 7.5Kx2, 10Kx3, 30K
300x50 expands to 1 na
300x300
200x70 1 10K loading screen sponsorhip logo
data input banner 1
click-to-video banner 1
MMA Standard Sizes 1
video slate ads 1 na
loading screen logo 1 na
tap-to-expand banner- 1 30K dimensions depend on execution
variable
skyline banner-variable 1 15K dimensions depend on execution
video pre roll 1

PLATFORM: Android

Ad Format Prevalence File Weights Notes


320x480 1 <40K std, <20K init 50K full size-resolution varies, this is typical
max rich media
320x320 1 50K full screen ad
320x250 1 50K full screen ad
320x53 2 <6K std, <9K anim, <20K “MMA XXL 6:1”
rich media
320x50 expandable to 1 20K
320x480
320x50 4 7.5Kx2, <5K, <7.5K ani- Static
mated
320x50 1 20K, <20K init/<50K max rich media
load
320x48 1 20K
320x30 1 10K
300x250 1 20K
300x50 expands up to 1
300x300
300x50 7 5K, 7.5Kx2, 10K, 30K
216x32 1 <3K std, <4.5K animated, MMA Size
<20K init rich media

PLATFORM: Palm

Ad Format Prevalence File Weights Notes


320x480 1 <40K std, <20K init 50K full page
max rich media
320x53 2 <6K std, <9K anim, <20K
rich media
300x50 3
320x40 expands down to 1
320x300
320x40 1
Other MMA Standard Sizes 2 5, 3, 2 1K each

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PLATFORM: Blackberry

Ad Format Prevalence File Weights Notes


480x150 1 15K splash screen sponsored by
380x79 1 15K bold/8900, Storm only
320x480 1 <40K std, <20K init 50K full page; resolution varies, this is
max rich media typical
320x67 1 15K Curve 83xx only
320x53 2 <6K std, <9K anim, <20K
rich media
320x40 expands down to 1
320x300
320x40 1
300x100 1 rich media
300x50 6 5K, 10K, 30K, <5K std,
<7.5K animated, <20K init
rich media
240x50 1 15K Pearl 81xx/82xx Flip only
216x36 2 3K, <3K std, <4.5K animat-
ed, <20K initial rich media
data input banner 1
click to video banner 1
MMA Standard Sizes 1
video pre-roll 1

PLATFORM: Windows Mobile

Ad Format Prevalence File Weights Notes


320x50 1 not specified
300x50 2 5K, 30K
216x36 2 na, 3K
168x28 1 2K
120x20 1 1K
MMA Standard Sizes 1

PLATFORM: Symbian

Ad Format Prevalence File Weights Notes


MMA Standard Sizes 2 5,3,2,1K

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