Google's profit jumps thanks to mobile and YouTube ad revenue

Yesterday, Google declared its financial results for Q2 2015, posting an impressive 11 percent increase in profits year over year. Further details have come to light which suggest that mobile and YouTube have been big winners this year for Google.

Specific numbers weren’t given out in the report, but Google CFO Ruth Porat states that the gap between mobile and desktop advertising revenue has continued to shrink. Mobile search results have apparently been a leading contributor to advertising revenue in the past year.

Much of the growth appears to have come from emerging markets, where mobile is the primary method of connecting to the Internet for many users. In 10 countries Google has noted that more searches are placed from mobile than from PC devices.

Overall, paid advertisement clicks have seen growth of 18-percent year over year. Paid clicks on Google websites saw a 30-percent year over year and 10-percent quarter over quarter increase.

It’s not just search results showing improvement, YouTube ad revenue has continued to grow, particularly in the mobile space. Porat pointed out that mobile YouTube watch time has more than doubled, which has helped to offset the falling cost per click. The number of companies placing YouTube advertisements has increased 40 percent and the average amount that a company spends is up by 60 percent.

Other Google services are also apparently playing a role in increasing the company’s mobile presence. Google Play is continuing to grow thanks to “deep linking”, which sees in-app ads link to other downloads. Google Play is also showing strong growth as a mobile gaming platform, which has become a hugely profitable industry.

Along with a boost to Google Photos and Android Pay, Google’s investments into additional mobile services appears to be paying off.