Digital Advertisers Increasingly Target Kids

Over the next three years, digital advertising aimed at kids is expected to grow by 42 percent, reaching about 1.7 billion U.S. dollars, according to PwC. By 2021, digital advertising is projected to make up about 37 percent of all ad dollars aimed at kids. In 2016, digital only comprised about 15 percent of kids advertising.

Advertising for kids is increasingly moving online from television. These ad dollars are matching the changing consumption habits of kids, who are increasingly shifting their screen time from TVs to internet connected devices. The expanding subscription based, ad-free platform presents a potential obstacle down the road for the digital advertising directed at kids.

Despite that, the proliferating robust legal framework around digital privacy laws for kids, often referred to as kidstech, acts as another boon to the industry. Clarifying legal interpretation of privacy laws, building tools to help companies comply with appropriate reforms, and settings a level playing field for how to advertise to kids on the internet will all aid the kidtech industry in the immediate future.

PwC’s report was commissioned by SuperAwesome, a kid-focused advertising technology organization. This market forecast does not consider the potential expansion of international laws to include 13 to 16 years old, nor do these estimates include the addition of legislation in India or China, which are both expected to put data privacy laws for kids in place. Both changes in age and countries would expand the estimates in the infographic below beyond what is detailed here.

As the internet permeates every part of life, kids are increasingly making up a larger share of users, meaning kid targeted advertising dollars are shifting from TV to internet connected devices. Legal systems around the world are figuring out how to regulate that change.