As a mobile brand navigating the evolving landscape of user acquisition, we see OEM advertising rising from niche tactic to foundational channel. In 2025, a handful of OEM ad platforms are leading the charge: Xiaomi’s Mi Ads, Huawei’s Petal Ads, OPPO’s HeyTap Ads, Vivo Ads, and Transsion’s network among them. Understanding their strengths, reach, and placements is critical to making OEM a core part of our growth stack.

In recent years, OEM advertising placing ads natively within device ecosystems at the manufacturer level has gained momentum as global app markets saturate and conventional channels turn costly and competitive. As described in Business of Apps’ “Top OEM Advertising Companies (2025)”, OEM platforms now offer massive reach, deep device-level placement, and lower friction for users. The rise is reinforced by publishers and platforms positioning OEM inventory as a strategic growth injection.

Based on multiple industry sources, the leading OEM advertising companies that brands should prioritize in 2025 are:

• Xiaomi / Mi Ads – Xiaomi remains the most globally prominent OEM ad ecosystem. Its inventory includes system surfaces like preloads, push, recommendations, app store placements, smart folders, and in-system widgets. Qi Ads highlights Xiaomi as “a global leader in OEM advertising,” especially strong in emerging markets including India, Southeast Asia, and Eastern Europe.
  
• Huawei / Petal Ads – Despite constraints on Google services, Huawei has built a strong native ecosystem. Its Petal Ads (formerly Huawei Ads) offers placements in AppGallery, push channels, and native ad slots, especially valuable for China and select international markets.
  
• OPPO / HeyTap Ads – OPPO (and its sibling Realme) operates the HeyTap Ads network, integrating into system apps, preloads, and push notifications. Qi Ads lists OPPO/HeyTap among top OEM platforms in 2025.
  
• Vivo Ads – Vivo’s OEM platform supports on-device recommendations, system UI placements, and app store promotion. Vivo Ads features prominently in the OEM roster in markets across Asia.
  
• Transsion (Infinix, Tecno, Itel) – Especially dominant across Africa and parts of South Asia, Transsion’s OEM network allows device manufacturers’ own placements such as pre-installs and native recommendations tailored to local users.
  

There are a few common strengths that elevate these OEM platforms:

1. Scale & Reach – OEM networks reach hundreds of millions of active users globally. For instance, Xiaomi claims a base of over 410 million monthly users.
2. Native Device Integration – OEM platforms enjoy privileged access to system surfaces (preloads, push, store suggestions, widgets) that feel less intrusive and more contextually aligned with user behavior.
   
3. Lower Competition / Better Unit Economics – Because OEM inventory is newer, many ad buyers are not yet saturated there; some brands report lower CPIs or improved ROAS via OEM channels.
   
4. Device-Level Data & Attribution – OEM platforms often have deep access to device signals, giving them potential advantages in measurement, anti-fraud, and optimization when compared to open ad networks.
   

However, OEM advertising is not a panacea. Key challenges include:

• Transparency & Trust – Brands need to build safeguards and insist on clear reporting, telemetry, and incrementality measurement to avoid overclaiming.
  
• Regional Fragmentation – Not all OEMs are equally strong in every geography; selection and targeting must match market strengths.
  
• Creative Adaptation – OEM placements often demand special creative formats (widget, push, recommendation cards), requiring brand adaptation.
  
• Technical & Operational Barriers – Integration with OEM SDKs, negotiating direct relationships, and scaling across multiple OEM ecosystems poses complexity.
  

From our vantage as a brand, the imperative is clear: OEM advertising in 2025 is not experimental, it is a strategic frontier. By building a diversified acquisition stack that includes Xiaomi, Huawei, OPPO, Vivo, and Transsion OEM channels, we hedge dependency on saturated networks and gain access to native, high-intent surfaces. Brands that systematically test, measure, and iterate OEM campaigns will convert early mover advantages into sustainable gains.

OEM may not yet dominate every market, but in many regions, it is already among the top channels. As more advertisers adopt OEM, those of us already in that space will gain compounding scale and intelligence. For 2025 and beyond, OEM advertising isn’t just part of the media mix, it’s a pillar of growth strategy.