Internet advertising revenues hit a record $4.9 billion for the first quarter of 2007--a 26% increase over Q1 2006, and a 2% increase over the fourth quarter's $4.8 billion, reported the Interactive
Advertising Bureau.
"The continued growth of online ad revenues clearly illustrates marketers' increased comfort with the extraordinary vitality and accountability of this medium,"
said IAB President and CEO Randall Rothenberg.
"Given these results, we may expect continued strong revenue growth buoyed by an expanding broadband subscriber base, which could translate into more
users spending more time online and offer a platform for rich media and video ads that dial-up connections can't render," said Peter Petrusky, director of PricewaterhouseCoopers, which conducts the
research for IAB.
The IAB research tracks all Web sites selling advertising--including search, email and lead generation.
What's significant, said Sheryl Draizen, senior vice president and
general manager of the IAB, is that marketers are now looking at interactive across their entire marketing budgets--not just advertising.