Paid search accounts for 41% of online ad spend, claims IAB

New Media Age, November, 2004 by Susie Harwood

Search advertising accounted for the biggest chunk of online ad spend in the first half of 2004, rocketing to 50% more than spend on cinema advertising, according to the latest set of in-depth figures from the Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB).

The value of paid-for search listings more than doubled to 114.3m [pounds sterling], up from 54.7m [pounds sterling] in the first hall of 2003. Online display ads and classifieds also saw growth during the first hall, albeit at a much slower rate than search.

Search now accounts for 40.9% of online ad spend, with display formats including banners and embedded formats on 34.7% and classifieds on 24.2%.

The figures highlight again that despite numerous case studies and more brand money coming online, the...