Facebook Inc (FB), Google Inc (GOOG), Amazon.com, Inc. (AMZN): 3 Companies to Own This Year

Google

Google is the undisputed leader of online search advertising in terms of market share with 79%. But is also the leader in the mobile advertising sphere with 56.6% of total mobile ad revenue. In terms of mobile searches, Google takes home 95% of all search revenue.

Google is such a huge figure in the mobile ad arena that whether it’s rolling out new products or advertising strategies doesn’t really matter. It has a working model that everyone uses. Facebook might have been the most downloaded app last year, but the next five most downloaded apps were all Google products.
As the mobile market continues to grow, Google will continue to take home big money from the mobile market.

The other three

Some might argue that we should pay attention to the other names on that chart above such as Pandora Media Inc (NYSE:P), Twitter, and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) instead of Amazon. Let me explain why not.

Pandora’s” create your own radio feature” is quickly becoming a common offering from many different companies. It faces steep competition from Spotify, GrooveShark, iHeartRadio, and plenty others. It went from owning 10% mobile ad market share in 2011 to less than 6% market share in 2012 when Facebook and Twitter stepped up their game. Pandora is now stuck with increasing competition and no new offerings.

Of the three companies left off my top three list, Twitter is the one that probably has the most potential to prove me wrong. Its mobile ad presence is new and growing and might very well take off in 2013. My hesitation lies in the fact that it is less widely used than Facebook and has shunned traditional forms of advertising, which seem to hamper its earning potential.

Lastly, Apple had 3.2% of the mobile ad market in 2012 according to the chart above. I just don’t see a lot of room for Apple to grow its market share. It has reached its zenith as far as the popularity of its phones and it’s unlikely that Apple would take a larger portion of revenue from its apps. So I see Apple as stagnant for now.

In conclusion, bank on Facebook, Amazon, and Google to get boosted by the rising mobile advertising market, but be wary of Pandora, Twitter, and Apple.

The article 3 Companies to Own This Year originally appeared on Fool.com and is written by Sean Sullivan.

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