Internet Ad Revenue Up 15.2% in First Half of 2008

Internet Ad Revenue Up 15.2% in First Half of 2008

Internet advertising revenues for the first six months of 2008 were $11.5 billion, setting a new half-year record that represents a 15.2% increase over the first half of 2007, according to recently released data from The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) andPricewaterhouseCoopers.

The IAB Internet Advertising Revenue Report also shows a Q2 increase of 12.8% over the same period in 2007 and shows a slight decline of 0.3% from the first quarter.

Search- and display-related advertising also reached all-time highs. Search revenues totaled nearly $5.1 billion for the first six months of 2008, up 24% from $4.1 billion for the same period in 2007.

Display-related advertising totaled nearly $3.8 billion for first six months of 2008, compared with $3.2 billion for the same period in 2007, roughly a 19% increase. Display-related advertising includes display banner ads, rich media, digital video, and sponsorship.

“Interactive advertising continues to demonstrate year-over-year growth as marketers and consumers increase their embrace of digital media,” said Randall Rothenberg, president and CEO of the IAB. “The essentially flat performance we see quarter to quarter reflects in part cyclical advertising trends. Compared to the trajectory in other media and in the general economy, interactive has outperformed because it delivers a level of accountability unmatched by any other advertising medium.”

About the report: The IAB research was conducted by the New Media Group of PricewaterhouseCoopers. Launched in  1996, it aggregates data from all companies that report meaningful online advertising revenues and includes data about online advertising revenues from websites, commercial online services, ad networks, free email providers, and all other companies selling online advertising.