'Ad downturn, schmownturn' says Microsoft

Can't see what all the fuss is about...

By Joe Wilcox, 24 October 2002 08:50

NEWS Microsoft has claimed that weakness in the online advertising market has been greatly exaggerated - adding that its own sales are on a "monster roll". For the 2002 fiscal year, which ended 30 June, MSN's online ad revenue grew $40m - between 30 June and 30 September it jumped a further 40 per cent. "We're on a monster roll," said Yusuf Mehdi, the corporate vice president overseeing Microsoft's MSN division. "This is the best-kept secret in the industry, which is that the online ad industry is alive and well and actually kicking butt for a number of companies out there." Industry studies contradict Mehdi's conclusions about the overall health of the online ad market. The Interactive Advertising Bureau and consultancy PricewaterhouseCoopers found that online advertising sales dropped 20 per cent across the board during the first six months of the year compared with the same period in 2001. Joe Wilcox writes for News.com

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