UK number one in mobile ad spending per user

Mobile advertisers in the UK spend more trying to reach each mobile internet user than anywhere else in the world, according to new estimates by eMarketer.

By this metric, the UK topped the overall-larger US mobile advertising market, as well as Japan and Scandinavian countries.

Advertisers spent $36.35 (£22.62) per mobile internet user in the UK in 2012, higher than any other market worldwide. Norway came in a close second, at $35.71 per person.

The US has the third-highest spending per mobile internet user in the world; advertisers in the country spent an average of $31.50 to reach each one. Japan, which is the world’s second-largest mobile advertising market in terms of absolute dollars, saw advertisers spend $26.23 per mobile internet user, putting it behind Denmark and in fifth place.

For total media ad spending per person, Norway took the top spot, above the US, Japan, China and the UK. Marketers spent $614.99 per person on advertising in Norway last year, eMarketer estimates.

In the UK, advertisers spent an estimated $380.17 per person, lower than the $524.75 spent per person in the US, but higher than larger ad markets like Japan and China.

Advertisers similarly spent more money targeting internet users in Norway than any other country, as digital ad spending per internet user in the country reached $250.21 per person this year.

The UK tops the US in digital ad spending per user, according to eMarketer. Marketers spent $187.96 on digital ads per web user in the UK this year, compared to $155.15 in the US.