INTERVIEW: Advertisements need to “act more like apps, because apps are where people spend most of their time”, David Shing, so-called digital prophet for Verizon-owned media business Oath (pictured) argued.

“It turns out the majority of what people do on the mobile device is app-driven. So the mobility advertising actually has to leapfrog where it has been in the past, which is sort of a bit desktop-ish, to be far more interactive – gamification, video, all those amazing things, immersiveness – those elements need to be folded into advertising,” he said during an interview at MWC Shanghai.

While mobile advertising is big business, Shing said an important issue is thinking not simply about ads, but “what’s the purpose that someone should interact with you in these formats, that don’t feel like they are interruptive but complementary, particularly on that limited screen”.

“I do think there’s extra value that could happen across ads today, it’s just not there yet because we haven’t really understood all of the wonderful things you could do on that device,” he continued.

Shing also talked about the potential for other technology to transform advertising, for example “VR for immersive experiences, AR for sharability. Those two things are interesting”. And, as additional interfaces such as wearables become more popular, this too could present opportunities.

“I do think that real estate is probably too small to see ads as we know it today, so it’ll be a totally different way of thinking about it,” he said.

To watch the full interview, click here.