To print: Click here or Select File and then Print from your browser's menu

This story was printed from silicon.com, located at http://www.silicon.com/

Story URL: http://www.silicon.com/retailandleisure/0,3800011842,39163273,00.htm

Online ads are 'where it's at'
Gaining ground on traditional media...

By Tim Ferguson

Published: Monday 16 October 2006

An increasing number of companies are using online marketing as a major part of their advertising strategy.

According to the quarterly Bellwether report, produced by NTC Economics for the Institute of Practitioners in Advertising, 11.5 per cent of companies spend more than 15 per cent of their advertising budgets on online marketing. This figure has more than doubled since 2000.

Luke Thompson, senior economist at NTC Economics, said: "Although still relatively minor, online marketing is a definite growth area."

He attributed the upward trend in online marketing spend to an increase in people choosing the internet over more traditional media formats such as paper and television. He said this trend is being driven by the young.

The spokesman cited the recent Google-YouTube link-up as a strong indicator of the increasing importance of online advertising.