In the period from January to April 2012, advertising expenditures in the German advertising market totaled €9.4 billion, an increase of 1.6% or €143.6 million compared to the same period in the previous year. Across all advertising media, the Internet showed the strongest growth proportionally in the German market. In absolute terms, the strongest driver of Internet advertising in the period from January to April 2012 was the automotive product group. To promote their automotive models, auto manufacturers increased advertising on the Internet by €21.4 million or 80.2% to €48.1 million, making them the fourth-strongest advertising product group on the Internet. Collectively, auto manufacturers also increased their advertising expenditures more than anyone else and had a 42% (up €60.2 million) share in the growth of the overall advertising market.
There was also an increase of mobile campaigns. In the first four months of 2012, advertising expenditures by auto manufacturers for display advertising on mobile websites and apps increased by 117 percent compared with the same period in the previous year.