But eMarketer said that online ad spending will still increase 23% over 2007--well above the 3.3% total ad growth projected this year. Online spending growth is expected to drop to about 16% in 2009. By 2012, an anticipated boom in online video advertising, along with continued strength in established Internet ad categories such as paid search and classifieds, will help push spending growth above 20% for the first time since 2008, according to eMarketer.
--Mark Walsh