Online ad spending overtakes TV

Wed Sep 30 2009 14:15:33

Advertising spending on the internet has overtaken television expenditure in the UK for the first time, according to a new report.

The study, carried out by the Internet Advertising Bureau (IAB) and PricewaterhouseCoopers, showed overall advertising fell by 16 per cent in the period, as firms slashed costs in the recession.

A record £1.75 billion, which represents nearly a quarter of the total advertising market, was spent online in the first half of this year. That compares with £1.64 billion for television.

It is thought that the UK is the world's first major economy to pass the media milestone.

Internet spending grew by 4.6 per cent during the period compared to the previous year and now makes up 23.5 per cent of the market. TV advertising fell by 17 per cent.

Online advertising is classified as email campaigns, classified adverts, display ads and search engine websites such as Google.

The IAB data showed that 60 per cent of the online advertising was spent on search engines, with 22 per cent on online classified ads.

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