This startup is riding the wave of soaring mobile ad spending in MENA

Mobile advertising is the next big thing: analysts say that mobile ad spending is growing seven times faster than desktop internet spending globally. Mobile ads grew by 77% in 2013, and are expected to grow 56% in 2014 and 48% in 2015. Within the next two years, mobile advertising is expected to become the fourth most popular advertising medium globally, contributing 7.7% to total ad spending by 2016, Wamda reported earlier this year.

But in the MENA region, where mobile penetration rates are hitting new heights, reaching 109% last year, this promising segment remains untapped. Globally, mobile advertising grew 82.8% in 2012, while mobile ad spend in the Middle East grew only 68%.

Convinced that there is a lot to do with mobile advertising in the region, four Jordanian friends decided to create AdFalcon, the first mobile advertising platform in the region to bridge the gap between local publishers and advertisers. On the strength of a $3 million USD round of angel investment, they launched the platform in late 2011 all over the region to help clients broadcast their mobile ads to their network.

“If you’re reaching out to an audience, you have to include mobile,“ says CEO Wael Quader, because it gives you access to a young audience that’s available anytime. It’s not as inclusive as SMS bombardment, he explains; it’s more qualitative since people actually choose to click on it, and advertisers can use it to make sure they reach out to the right audience for their product.

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This startup is riding the wave of soaring mobile ad spending in MENA