• Reuters, Tuesday, November 14, 2006 12 PM

Online ad growth projections are a staple of the Internet research business, but Yahoo chief Terry Semel says recent predictions are wildly off the mark because they haven't included advertising on video, social media, or mobile phones.

Research companies like eMarketer and JupiterResearch might beg to differ, since they have tried to project spending on these platforms. Semel, in a speech in London, said he believes video and social networking will soon be an integral part of the online experience.

While many of these forms still lack a "proper way to advertise," Semel says those issues will be resolved soon. "Whether it's mobile or whether it's video or whether it's more and more community (social-networking sites), these factors have not gone into those numbers, so we think the actual growth potential of advertising online is understated," he said. Maybe Semel should take his own advice and buy Yahoo a social networking site?

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