Amazon makes headway in breaking up Facebook and Google's digital ad duopoly

Reports have suggested Amazon has recently put more resources into building out its advertising business - AP

Facebook and Google's grip on the US advertising market is loosening, figures released today show, as big brands wake up to Amazon's vast customer reach. 

Research group eMarketer now forecasts that Amazon will hold 4.15pc of the US digital ad market in 2018, equal to around $4.61bn (£3.5bn) in revenues, having previously estimated the retailer would generate $2.89bn over the year. This would place Amazon as the third biggest US digital ad platform, leapfrogging Oath and Microsoft for the first time.

Although Google and Facebook are set to remain as the largest players in the digital ad market, with an expected 37.14pc and 20.57pc share respectively, their combined market share is likely to be down on 2017, at an estimated 57.7pc from 59.1pc last year, eMarketer has said.

Monica Peart, eMarketer's senior director of forecasting, said: "Amazon's strong handle on consumer purchase behaviour sets it apart from Google and Facebook in the digital ad market, which has made the company an attractive option for advertisers."

The research group also found consumers were increasingly starting their product searches on Amazon, and not on Google, which "gives third-party sellers a reason to increase bids for keywords on Amazon". 

The forecasts come amid reports the retailer is increasing its focus on advertising and, while purely for the US, may signal a wider shift in the digital ad market which has been dominated by Facebook and Google for years. 

In the UK, Google and Facebook take around 55pc of every pound spent on digital advertising, while the portion of total media ad spend going into digital is also growing. 

Concerns over the stranglehold the two tech giants hold over the market prompted a UK government review earlier this year to call for an investigation of trends, saying Google and Facebook's duopoly was causing a "danger to our democracy" by ridding news publishers of a vital source of funding. 

Around 40 local newspapers closed last year, and, earlier this year, the boss of Reach, which is behind titles including the Manchester Evening News and the Birmingham Post, said the "massive pillar" of advertising for the local press was "eroding very, very fast".