Report: Bulk of 2020 digital ad dollars going to Facebook

FPI / February 26, 2020

Since accepting political advertising “warts and all,” Facebook had essentially cornered the digital market for the 2020 election.

Facebook thus far has taken in $800 million in political ad revenue for the 2020 election, or 60 percent of the digital market share, according to a new marketing analysis.

The report from eMarketer added that Google has thus far captured 18.2 percent of ads during the 2020 election period.

“Facebook is the dominant digital platform for political ads, capturing a 59.4 percent share during the 2019-20 election cycle. That equates to $796.8 million,” said eMarketer.

Facebook said it was guided by the principle that “people should be able to hear from those who wish to lead them, warts and all, and that what they say should be scrutinized and debated in public.”

Eric Haggstrom, eMarketer forecasting analyst, said that “Facebook offers reach, targeting capabilities, and ease of use that appeal to political advertisers. Candidates can more quickly and easily send ads to potential supporters compared with TV or radio. In a competitive election, timeliness, efficiency, and relevancy are incredibly important.”

Washington Exmainer columnist Paul Bedard noted that “Facebook has faced a firestorm of criticism for its political ad policies. Protesters have even camped out at the home of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.”

Meanwhile, Bedard noted, “other notable digital platforms, including Twitter, have barred ads, and that has probably helped the bottom lines of Google and Facebook.”

The eMarketer report said that most of Google’s ad income came on YouTube. Google’s take so far is $243.7 million.

Democratic candidate Mike Bloomberg has vowed to spend up to $1 billion of his personal fortune on his bid for the presidency. He has outspent his Democratic Party competitors by leaps and bounds.

Anyone who frequents YouTube can attest to how Bloomberg is flooding the zone.

A Twitter user wrote: “I’m watching old goth videos on YouTube and every single ad is for Bloomberg.”

The eMarketer report said that the Facebook/Google domination of political ads is similar to other ads:

"Google and Facebook already control 60.8 percent of the total U.S. digital ad market. And when it comes to the duopoly's share of digital political ad revenues, it has an even tighter grip, with a combined 77.6 percent this election cycle."

Free Press International