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Mobile App-Ads.txt Adoption Report, FY 2020: Adoption Up 79% Across Top Google Play Store Apps and 77% Among Top Apple App Store Apps

Mar 8, 2021 9:30:00 AM

By the end of 2020, 72% of the top 10,000 Apple App Store apps and 75% of the top 10,000 Google Play Store apps had app-ads.txt (top apps based on number of programmatic ads sold, as measured by Pixalate)

PALO ALTO, Calif., March 8, 2021 -- Pixalate, a global ad fraud intelligence and marketing compliance platform, today released Mobile App-Ads.txt Adoption Reports for Google Play Store apps and Apple App Store apps, reviewing mobile app-ads.txt adoption trends in 2020. Pixalate analyzed more than 5.5 million apps for the reports. 

The reports analyze the state of app-ads.txt adoption among mobile apps in the Google Play Store (“Android apps”) and Apple App Store (“iOS apps”) in 2020. The IAB Tech Lab’s Ads.txt / App-Ads.txt programs aim to “increase transparency in the programmatic advertising ecosystem” by allowing traffic rights owners “to publicly declare the companies they authorize to sell their digital inventory.”

Key Findings: From Q1 to Q4 2020, app-ads.txt adoption increased by 79% across the top* 10,000 Android apps and 77% across top* 10,000 iOS apps

Android Apps in 2020:

Download Android Report

  • 13% of all Google Play Store apps have app-ads.txt — up from 6% in Q120
  • Nearly 500,000 Android apps now have app-ads.txt
  • 79% increase in app-ads.txt adoption among the top 10k Android apps* (Q1 to Q4 2020)
  • 31% ad fraud (invalid traffic) rate on apps without app-ads.txt compared to 22% on apps with app-ads.txt
  • 75% of top 10k Android apps* list Google on their app-ads.txt files as either a ‘Direct’ or ‘Reseller’ partner
  • 24% app-ads.txt adoption rate among ‘Games’ apps (over 100k apps)

iOS Apps in 2020:

Download iOS Report

  • 7% of all Apple App Store apps have app-ads.txt — up from 3% in Q120
  • Over 125,000 iOS apps now have app-ads.txt
  • 77% increase in app-ads.txt adoption among top 10k iOS apps* (Q1 to Q4 2020)
  • 35% ad fraud (invalid traffic) rate on apps without app-ads.txt compared to 21% on apps with app-ads.txt
  •  traffic) rate on apps without app-ads.txt compared to xx% on apps without
  • 72% of top 10k iOS apps* list Google on their app-ads.txt files as either a ‘Direct’ or ‘Reseller’ partner
  • 22% app-ads.txt adoption rate among ‘Games’ apps (over 50k apps)

*Note: “Top apps” are based on the number of programmatic ads sold, net of invalid traffic (IVT), as measured by Pixalate.

What's inside the reports:

Pixalate's App Ads.txt Adoption Reports include:

  • Adoption among the top Apple App Store and Google Play Store apps
  • Ad fraud (IVT) reduction impact of app-ads.txt
  • App-ads.txt adoption by app category
  • Top sellers/exchanges, including by app category

Download free copies of the reports here: Google Play Store App-Ads.txt Trends in 2020 and Apple App Store App-Ads.txt Trends in 2020.

About Pixalate

Pixalate, a global ad fraud intelligence and marketing compliance platform, works with brands and platforms to prevent invalid traffic and improve ad inventory quality. We offer the only system of coordinated solutions across display, app, video, and OTT/CTV for better detection and elimination of ad fraud. Pixalate is an MRC-accredited service for the detection and filtration of sophisticated invalid traffic (SIVT) across desktop and mobile web, mobile in-app, and OTT/CTV advertising. www.pixalate.com

Disclaimer

The content of this press release, and the 2020 Mobile App-Ads.txt Adoption Reports (the "Report(s)"), reflect Pixalate's opinions with respect to factors that Pixalate believes can be useful to the digital media industry. The data has not been audited or reviewed by a third party, but the research and insights are grounded in Pixalate's proprietary technology and analytics, which Pixalate is continuously evaluating and updating. Any references to outside sources in the Reports and herein should not be construed as endorsements. Pixalate's opinions are just that – opinions – which means that they are neither facts nor guarantees. Pixalate is sharing this data not to impugn the standing or reputation of any entity, person or app, but, instead, to report findings and trends pertaining to apps available on the Apple and Google Play stores and the inventory supply partners of such apps, derived from each app's app-ads.txt file. Pixalate does not independently verify third-party information (e.g. whether the information specified in app-ads.txt files is complete, current and accurate).

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