April 4, 2016 According to a survey by European marketing research and technology company AudienceProject, 36% of internet users in Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden used an ad blocker as of February 2016. The ad blocking user rate was highest in Sweden, at 39% of respondents, followed by Denmark (37%). Norway and Finland were tied at 34% each. Unsurprisingly, the youngest respondents in AudienceProject’s study—those ages 15 to 25—were the most likely to use an ad blocker. Sweden again led the pack at 59% of internet users in that age group, followed by Denmark (55%), Finland (53%) and Norway (49%). Looking at the region overall, 54% of 15- to 25-year-old internet users said they used ad blocking software in February. AudienceProject’s research also showed that ad blocking use was most common on a computer. At least one-quarter of respondents in each Nordic country said they used an ad blocker on a desktop or laptop, with this share rising to 34% among internet users in Sweden. In all, three in 10 internet users in the Nordic region used an ad blocker on a computer in February, compared with 9% for tablets and 8% for mobile phones.
eMarketer reports that a local survey shows ad-blockers have become increasingly popular in Nordic countries. The survey, conducted by AudienceProject, showed that in the 15-25 year old age group an average of 36% of internet users in Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland used an ad-blocker; led by 54% of users in February. The results also showed that ad-blocking software was more commonly used on a laptop or desktop computer (30% of users surveyed) with only 8% using the software on mobile phones.