The term “digital retail media ads,” or “e-commerce media ads,” refers to advertising internet users see on retail websites, online marketplaces, or shopping apps. It is a fast-developing market fueled by the rise of e-commerce, economic uncertainty connected with the Russia-Ukraine war, and the disappearance of third-party cookies. In 2024,
was estimated at 136 billion U.S. dollars.
is the undisputed market leader, with roughly a third of global total ad revenues. However, numerous retailers worldwide have also begun leveraging their platforms for ad revenue.
Alibaba: a giant of the East
The Chinese
Alibaba Group is active across all types of e-commerce – B2B with Alibaba.com, B2C with Tmall, and C2C with Taobao, to name only the largest. All its properties held roughly a quarter of the
global e-commerce market in 2022 and have been successfully ad-monetized for many years. Online advertising comprised 38 percent of Alibaba's revenue in 2021. It is by far the most prominent ad publisher in China and is also present in 190 other countries. Its online shopping platforms have a collective user base of 1.2 billion – more than 900 million in China and 300 million from the rest of the world. Until 2023, Alibaba was the largest digital retail media player worldwide. However, its 2024 ad revenue was estimated at 42 billion (1467524), having grown only 1.4 percent year on year. On the other hand, Amazon’s ad revenue increased 16 percent that year, reaching 53 billion dollars. This signifies that the U.S.-based ecommerce giant has dethroned Alibaba and taken the lead.
Mercado Libre: unmatched on its own turf
In Latin America, the e-commerce market is dominated by
Mercado Libre, which is present in 18 countries across the region. In 2023, the company reported approximately 218 million
unique active users. This number will likely keep increasing as roughly a quarter of Latin America's population still waits for an internet connection, and a third are not digital buyers yet. Mercado Libre's ad services business
Mercado Ads generated 716 million U.S. dollars in revenue in 2023, which amounted to 1.6 percent of the company's gross merchandise volume (GMV) that year.
Carrefour Group: a traditional retailer with great aspirations
The French retailer
Carrefour Group, active across Europe, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East, and Africa, generates roughly nine percent of its revenue with its
e-commerce operations. In its own words, the company is working on becoming a “digital retail company.” This will entail, among others, expanding e-commerce operations and ramping up its retail media offer. Mid-2022, Carrefour announced it was going to create a joint venture with Publicis Group to support Carrefour's retail media activities in Europe and Latin America. This new entity was named Unlimitail (11781) and officially launched in June 2023. Publicis's press release stated that the two companies aim to “bring to Europe and Latin America the same scale and connectivity that is enabling the retail media boom in the U.S.”
Ozon: a rising star
Also called the "Amazon of Russia," Ozon is an e-commerce pure-player and one of
Russia's leading online marketplaces. Already in early 2021, it started working on expanding to other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States, such as Belarus and Kazakhstan, where it now holds logistics facilities. In 2022, it also opened offices in Turkey and China. This move is intended to cushion the impact of sanctions imposed upon Russia after it attacked Ukraine, not only by tapping into the markets for sales but also by building new supply chains. Ozon's advertising platform was launched in early 2019, allowing sellers to use promotional shelves and ad banners to better market their products. In the last quarter of 2023, the ads had an audience of approximately 46 million
active buyers. The company's
ad revenue increases annually, reaching roughly 788 million U.S. dollars in the same period.
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