Internet Ad Spending Climbs Again

Ad buyers continue to see the Internet as a viable way to promote their products and services. Spending on Internet ads during the third quarter approached an estimated $1.75 billion, the most spent since advertisers spent $1.77 billion two years earlier, according to a preliminary report issued this week by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers. Last quarter's spending soared 20% from a year earlier and 5% from the second quarter.

Tom Hyland, chairman of PricewaterhouseCoopers New Media Group, says the past quarter's growth demonstrates that the basic foundations of interactive advertising are built on a solid business model. The fundamentals of interactive advertising will further drive industry revenue higher, he says.

Third-quarter online ad-revenue figures were estimated by surveying and aggregating data from the top 15 online ad sellers. The results were then extrapolated to calculate the total estimated industry revenue figure. Actual third-quarter results will be reported along with actual fourth-quarter revenue early next year.