New figures from the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) show that Internet advertising now accounts for 5.8 of the advertising market, beating the 5.1 per cent of outdoor advertising.
Online is also outperforming the sector as a whole, with a 62.3 per cent year on year growth rate in online ad spend for 1H 2005, compared with just 3 per cent overall.
This leaves online set to be worth more than £1bn before the year is out. The rolling total for the year was already £864.6m in June, based on having taken £490.8m by that point.
Guy Phillipson, Chief Executive of the IAB said: ‘These results have surpassed our expectations. At the end of 2004 the IAB predicted online would overtake outdoor by mid 2006 and we’ve beaten this target. Now the Internet looks certain to be a £1 billion medium in 2005.’
The IAB reckons the consumer appetite for online shopping has fuelled much of the upturn, as has the rapid adoption of broadband: people are not only using the Internet more, they are spending a larger part of their income through it.
Increased bandwidths also leave advertisers wider options as to how to deliver adverts, with video, personalisation and localisation creating new avenues to engage surferss.
Phillipson addd: ‘Broadband is experiencing record take up this year, which has fuelled internet consumption and in turn attracted a greater share of advertisers’ spend. Marketers are recognising the internet’s full potential and are actively diverting budgets into online advertising.’
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