• by Jack Loechner , Staff Writer @mp_research, December 6, 2005

Internet Video Now a Mass Audience for Advertisers

David Hallerman, Senior Analyst at eMarketer and author of the new Online Video Advertising report, says "More than any other advertising format, Internet video has the potential to blend hot marketing elements together - branded entertainment, paid search, viral marketing, consumer generated media, behavioral targeting, website brand marketing and online gaming."

Based on the comScore Media Metrix Online Video Ratings service, more than 94 million people in the U.S., or 56 percent of the domestic Internet population, viewed a streaming video online in June. Over the three months ending June 2005, the average consumer viewed 73 minutes of streaming video content per month.

The eMarketer report concludes that by the end of the decade, advertisers will spend at least $1.5 billion on video ads online, and a main driver is broadband adoption in the home. The key barrier was passed earlier this year, notes Hallerman, when more than half of US online households connected via high-speed access. Advertisers seeking a mass audience can now look online. By early 2008 more than half of all households  online or not  will log-on via broadband.

Broadband Households in the U.S. (millions)
2000	5.2
2002	17.4
2004	34.3
2006	51.1
2008	69.4
Source: eMarketer, February 2005

eMarketer estimates that spending for Internet video advertising in the US will nearly triple in 2007 to $640 million from this year's $225 million as film and video commercials are transferred to a new medium and new markets.

Internet Video U.S. Ad Spending (million $)
2005	$225
2007	640
2009	1,500
Source: eMarketer, November 2005

"... what (this) means," says Hallerman, "is that marketing campaigns can extend TV's reach to the online space, ... (and) use the Internet's ability to track consumers in ways that match up television commercials with online (and offline) activity."

For the complete article and a link to the Report, please visit eMarketer.