Internet advertising revenues for 2005 are estimated to exceed $12.5 billion, according to just-released data by the Interactive Advertising Bureau and PricewaterhouseCoopers. This amounts to a 30% annual increase over the previous revenue record of $9.6 billion in 2004. Great stats.
IAB and PwC also pointed to another impressive statistic: the $3.6 billion in revenues for Q4 2005 makes this the second consecutive quarter to surpass the $3 billion mark. The IAB and PwC also noted that the fourth quarter revenues represent a 35% increase over the same period in 2004 and a 17% increase over Q3 of 2005.
eMarketer’s original projection last year of $12.3 billion for 2005 Internet ad revenues closely matched the $12.5 billion figure from IAB/PwC. (Note: eMarketer benchmarks its online ad spending projections against the IAB/PwC’s numbers.)
"As the IAB/PwC just reported, two years in a row of 30%-plus spending growth is a rare occurence," said David Hallerman, eMarketer’s senior analyst for advertising and marketing. "The last time any medium’s ad spending grew so rapidly was in the earliest days of cable TV, back in 1984 and 1985. And with our projected increase of 24.7% for 2006, when Internet ad spending will reach $15.6 billion, the continued strength of the online space surpasses any other current ad medium."
